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ITRI and BTQ Validate QCIM Quantum Secure Chips

Strategy has brought BTQ Technologies and the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) together to develop the QCIM security chip. Since it proves hardware performance and energy efficiency in silicon, this relationship is crucial to commercial readiness. Direct memory processing of data aims to advance post-quantum cryptography systems beyond performance and power limits.

Specific technological standards are required to provide quantum-resistant infrastructure for critical businesses like finance and telecommunications. This project is coordinated with others to ensure the final product is fully integrated and ready for use. International networks should be protected from large-scale quantum computing's new threats.

Post-Quantum Security Turning Point

As the world prepares for large-scale quantum computing, quantum-resistant infrastructure is in high demand. BTQ and Industrial Technology Research Institute will test the QCIM chip's next-generation security features to combat these threats.

This validation process measures the chip's real-world performance, focusing on speed and power consumption. The teams created these benchmarks to guide safe, scalable cryptographic computing and product development.

The CIM Innovation

QCIM is an alternative to typical semiconductor architectures. As security requirements increase, typical systems move data between memory and the CPU, limiting power and performance.

To execute cryptographic activities near data storage, QCIM was established. BTQ and Industrial Technology Research Institute use “compute-in-memory” software to improve post-quantum cryptography (PQC) workload management. Expect this design change to:

Validating solutions early in the product cycle reduces development risk.

Quicken system integration engineering decisions. Industry standards for silicon-level performance and energy efficiency.

The ITRI programme

The ITRI initiative is part of BTQ's end-to-end commercialization strategy. Industrial Technology Research Institute promotes BTQ's relationship with South Korean hardware-level security pioneer ICTK while focusing on early-stage silicon validation and architectural benchmarks.

The ICTK cooperation aims to construct a fully functional, commercially deployable post-quantum chipset for downstream development. This comprises system-level integration, packaging, and mass production. ITRI helps BTQ test its core technology before ICTK implements it for mass market.

Leadership Viewpoint

BTQ Technologies CEO Olivier Roussy Newton recommended applying theory to practice. As governments and businesses prepare for the post-quantum future, security requirements are rising swiftly, but adoption requires practical, efficient, and deployable technology, Newton said.

Dr. Chih-Cheng Lu, Industrial Technology Research Institute's Electronic and Optoelectronic System Research Laboratories Manager, emphasized the research's technical significance. This study evaluates the feasibility, performance, and energy efficiency of compute-in-memory PQC workloads to address the high computational cost of post-quantum cryptography as quantum threats grow.

Future Applications and Industry Impact

Quantum-resistant infrastructure is needed in public and private sectors. The QCIM chip is developed for long-term security and energy efficiency in the following settings:

That includes mission-critical networks and secure communications.

Financial systems that need quick cryptographic processing.

Critical infrastructure and edge computing.

Telecommunications, biology, and defense. Read Infleqtion Inc.'s $6.2M ENCODE Project to Secure U.S. Energy Grid.

About Partners

One of the world's largest applied research companies, ITRI was founded in 1973. It helped create TSMC and UMC and put Taiwan on the map as an innovation-driven economy. This new project builds on a 2022 relationship with BTQ.

BTQ and ICTK sign a $15 million quantum-secure chip development deal.

BTQ, ICTK

BTQ Technologies Corp. and ICTK Co., Ltd. signed a $15 million development and cooperation investment agreement to develop the Quantum Compute in Memory (QCIM) chip. A next-generation quantum-secure secure-element semiconductor to defend vital industries from quantum threats is the goal of this alliance.

The strategic cooperation intends to accelerate the commercialisation of this crucial technology to secure defence, critical infrastructure, IoT devices, payments, mobile authentication, AI, and digital assets. The project also promotes Korea's Quantum Defence Strategy, which prioritises rapid quantum-secure technology integration into critical defence and infrastructure systems.

A participation arrangement covers BTQ's direct equity participation in ICTK, and a Development Agreement covers the QCIM chip's joint design, validation, tape-outs, and certification. In exchange, ICTK promises preferential production capacity and in-kind cost sharing. This collaboration shows a strong commitment to building a quantum ecosystem in Korea and worldwide.

Future Quantum Compute in Memory The new QCIM chip addresses quantum computing's shifting threat landscape, improving hardware-level security. Direct integration of post-quantum cryptography (PQC) and BTQ's CASH cryptographic acceleration into the silicon layer is the primary innovation.

By integrating PQC at this fundamental level, the QCIM chip provides end-to-end quantum-secure identity, signing, attestation, and secure storage for next-generation commercial and financial networks. Using crypto-agility, this unique architecture allows adaptable cryptographic upgrades without disrupting client workflows or systems. This makes the security solution future-proof and easy to add new PQC algorithms as they are developed and standardised.

BTQ CEO Olivier Roussy Newton says this places quantum-safe security at the centre of the global silicon ecosystem. He said the cooperation allows hardware makers to implement post-quantum protection at scale by integrating ICTK's secure-element expertise with BTQ's QCIM platform, driven by CASH acceleration.

Setting New Secure Hardware Performance Benchmarks Compared to secure hardware systems, the QCIM chip should perform better. Early performance goals include five times faster AES throughput than top secure hardware.

Real-time applications require the chip's ability to authenticate one million digital signatures per second. With this high output, the design uses less than 1 microjoule every cryptographic operation to conserve energy. QCIM is a resource-conscious security component for high-assurance use cases, according to these requirements.

QCIM applications include secure cold and hardware wallets for digital assets, mobile authentication, financial security, IoT endpoints, payment gateways, and defence systems. Cybersecurity threats to stablecoin and digital asset markets are the focus of the collaboration.

Partnership accelerates globalisation and commercialisation This alliance uses both companies' strengths to quickly penetrate the market. BTQ provides PQC technology and intellectual property, while ICTK provides secure element (SE) design and manufacturing expertise.

ICTK, Korea's top secure element chip maker and provider, will match its future secure element roadmap with QCIM development by providing resources, scalability, and third-party validation. ICTK has many financial and telecommunications partnerships, including LG U+.

In partnership with BTQ, ICTK CEO Jungwon Lee stated they can natively embed post-quantum security into their next-generation SE platform, ensuring clients gain supply-chain scalability, certification, and performance.

The initiative supports Korean national efforts, as shown by the Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) and the Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT) partnership to deploy quantum technology in weapon systems and secure communications.