Q*Bird, a Delft-based deep-tech spin-off and market leader in quantum-secure communication, has been awarded prestigious EIC Accelerator funding. The company will receive €2.5 million in grants and €5 million in equity investment to accelerate the scaling up of its technology for quantum-secure networks.
The NEXUS project grant focuses on improving hardware efficiency and format, developing new optical modules and enabling large-scale implementations with many users. There will also be an orchestration layer for multi-operator and multi-domain quantum networks, which, according to Q*Bird, will give Europe end-to-end sovereign quantum communication capabilities.
Q*Bird was one of only 40 startups selected from nearly 1,000 applications and is one of four Dutch companies in this cohort. The funding supports expansion of production capacity, reduction of quantum key distribution (QKD) costs, and job and market growth.
Q*Bird’s technology – including its Falqon® products based on Measurement-Device-Independent Quantum Key Distribution (MDI-QKD) – is already operational in critical networks such as the Port of Rotterdam, a Madrid metropolitan quantum network and a Benelux cross-border quantum link. Read more about the funding through the pressrelease on the website.
