Toshiba Wins UK Contract to Scale Quantum Networks With BT, Colt

Toshiba Europe won an Innovate UK contract to build long-distance, multi-user quantum network subsystems, with BT and Colt testing them on real fiber. Building a quantum network is one thing. Making it affordable enough for telecom companies to actually use is another. That’s the challenge Toshiba is taking on after securing a new UK government contract to develop long-distance quantum networking technology. Rather than laying entirely new fiber networks, the company wants to make better use of infrastructure that’s already in the ground. Toshiba Europe announced the award Nov. 6, with BT and Colt Technology Services joining the 18-month effort to validate the technology under realistic operating conditions. The project is part of the UK’s broader push to develop advanced quantum networks by 2035. But Toshiba faces a much tighter deadline: February 2028, when it must complete work intended to advance quantum networking toward commercial adoption. The award came through Innovate UK’s Enabling Commercial Quantum Networking competition, a combined £20 million investment in the country’s quantum ecosystem. It covers quantum networking subsystems, not a finished network. According to Toshiba’s announcement, the project will: “Building quantum networks at scale requires cost-effective subsystems that can be readily integrated into today’s data communications infrastructure,” said Andrew Shields, vice president of Toshiba Europe and head of its Quantum Technology Division. Neither operator is new to Toshiba hardware. The project also builds on Toshiba Europe’s earlier work running quantum encryption over existing fiber. Those projects centered on quantum key distribution (QKD), which uses quantum physics to share encryption keys. The new work points further out. Toshiba says a longer-term UK goal is to link quantum processors across different data centers so they can work on tasks together. The 2035 target frames the headlines, but the competition’s rules set a much nearer clock. Projects run 18 months, start Sept. 1, 2026, and must end by Feb. 28, 2028. Each project’s total costs must fall between £1.5 million and £3 million, including VAT. Toshiba has not disclosed the value of its contract. So this is a supply-chain contract, not a network build. The competition’s stated aim is to place UK suppliers within the supply chains of system integrators and service providers. Here, two potential customers, BT and Colt, are doing the testing. That makes the real signal procurement, not prototypes. The UK has funded quantum in targeted rounds like this before. The next test is whether BT or Colt commits to deploying Toshiba’s subsystems once the contract wraps up by early 2028. Subscribe to the Quantum State newsletter from eWeek to stay ahead of quantum computing and real-world applications shaping the next era of technology. If you can only read one tech story a day, this is it. Singapore’s new AntiScam Pango app checks WhatsApp, Telegram and SMS notifications for scam patterns, but Android-only access and detection limits leave gaps. Ray-Ban Meta and Oakley Meta arrive in Philippine stores Nov. 10, with Tagalog AI support and four models spanning everyday, prescription, and sports use. Is 16GB RAM still enough for a Windows AI laptop? Microsoft’s latest plans raise new questions about when upgrading to 32GB is worth the money. Apple’s rumored $1,000 tabletop robot could launch in 2027 with a swiveling display and Siri AI, but software delays may push its release into 2028. We use cookies and other data collection technologies to provide the best experience for our customers. You may request that your data not be shared with third parties here: Do Not Sell My Data.