How Australia's first quantum startup survived for 16 years
Now serving customers like JP Morgan, QuintessenceLabs was founded all the way back in 2008, when quantum computing was more idea than reality.
Advocates of quantum computing say the technology will do a lot of good. It will create better pharmaceuticals, they say, as well as things like greener cement and even superconductors.
But the technology poses risks too. Quantum computers are expected to be capable of breaking through the encryption systems currently used to secure the internet.
This potential problem has been on Vikram Sharma’s radar for two decades. He founded QuintessenceLabs in 2008, a time when quantum computing was considered even more fringe science than it is today.
Backed by Westpac since 2015, the company creates encryption tools for the likes of JP Morgan and the US Department of Homeland Security. Sharma says that this technology not only adds protection today but also prepares companies for the quantum threats of tomorrow.
