AIT Austrian Institute of Technology has about 1.500 employees working on the development of the tools, technologies and solutions for Austrian industries that are of utmost relevance for the future. As Austria’s largest non-university research institute, AIT, is at the forefront of industrializing quantum communication. Building on Nobel laureate Anton Zeilinger’s pioneering work, AIT has become a leader in quantum cryptography, advancing terrestrial and satellite-based communication technologies.
AIT plays a significant role in the European Quantum Flagship program and the EuroQCI initiative, focusing on creating high-security quantum infrastructure across the EU.
The research in QOSiLICIOUS complements this expertise through its focus on miniaturizing the devices required for quantum communication. Further current projects are including QCI-CAT and PETRUS, which are critical to developing Europe’s next-generation quantum communication networks. QCI-CAT is driving forward the development of a quantum communication infrastructure for highly secure government applications in the EU and implementing specific applications in Austria. In this context, the AIT is also working at the national level on projects such as QKD4GOV on quantum-safe cryptography for the transmission of confidential information between authorities as part of the national KIRAS funding programme for security research, which is funded by the Austrian Federal Ministry for Finance (BMF). The PETRUS project aims to establish a European cyber defence shield over the next ten years based on a quantum communication infrastructure consisting of terrestrial and satellite-based solutions. Furthermore, AIT plays a major role in the Nostradamus initiative which has also been commissioned by the European Commission to build a testing infrastructure for quantum key distribution (QKD) in Europe. This will enable the evaluation of European manufacturers’ QKD devices.