By Jane Lanhee Lee
OAKLAND, Calif. (Reuters) -Sandbox AQ, a startup spun off from Alphabet Inc last year, said on Tuesday it raised $500 million as it helps customers prepare for a quantum computing future.
Quantum computers, whose processors run based on quantum physics, could one day carry out certain calculations millions of times quicker than today’s fastest super computers, yet they remain years away from making a big change, such as breaking encryption.
But as hackers can harvest data today and wait to decrypt them when the quantum computers are ready, the National Institute of Standards and Technology under the U.S. Commerce Department selected new cryptography standards last year that could better withstand quantum computers.
The U.S. government has set quantum computing as one of the key technologies important for national security.
Sandbox AQ’s software scans companies’ systems to identify which parts use the old cryptography, identifies which need to be replaced urgently, and sets out to fortify the encryption of the enterprise, said CEO Jack Hidary.
Sandbox also has a business selling quantum simulation software to accelerate development of drugs and materials and a business using quantum sensors for medical devices and for technology that can eventually replace the GPS use.
Former Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt is the startup’s chairman as well as investor. Other investors include Breyer Capital, T. Rowe Price funds and Salesforce.com Inc founder Marc Benioff’s TIME Ventures.
Schmidt in a statement said Sandbox AQ has already signed up more than 15 enterprise and government customers and is partnering with 30 universities to train PhDs and other talent needed.
Some of the team and inspiration for Sandbox originated at Alphabet in 2016. But the Google parent is not a shareholder as Hidary said he wanted the company to be independent to work with the other major cloud companies as well.
(Reporting By Jane Lanhee Lee; editing by Jonathan Oatis and David Gregorio)
