The Polish PIONIER quantum network has the longest range in Europe. The PIONIER-Q project featured in the PARP report

The Polish PIONIER quantum network has the longest range in Europe. The PIONIER-Q project featured in the PARP report

The Polish fiber-optic network dedicated to Quantum Key Distribution (QKD), built on the infrastructure of the PIONIER network, has already reached over 1,700 km in length. This achievement makes it the longest network of its kind in Europe and one of the longest worldwide. The role of the PIONIER-Q project, coordinated by the Poznań Supercomputing and Networking Center (PCSS), was highlighted in the latest report by the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development (PARP) titled “Monitoring Trends in Innovation” as crucial for building digital sovereignty and national security.

The Polish Agency for Enterprise Development published the twentieth edition of the “Monitoring Trends in Innovation” report, produced under the Inno_LAB project. The publication systematically analyzes technological, social, and economic phenomena influencing the development of modern solutions. In the current edition of the report, alongside topics such as the development of artificial intelligence and advancing cyborgization, particular attention was given to quantum and post-quantum cryptography. The publication explicitly highlighted the PIONIER-Q project as one of the key pillars in developing these technologies in Poland.

The Quantum Key Distribution infrastructure developed under the PIONIER-Q project utilizes the existing fiber-optic resources of the PIONIER network, which is managed by PCSS. The reach and scale of this undertaking are unique on an international level – the Polish QKD network has surpassed a length of 1,700 km. Currently, this infrastructure connects nodes in five strategic locations: Warsaw, Gdańsk, Poznań, Wrocław, and Kraków.

The significance of the PIONIER-Q project extends beyond national borders. The initiative effectively integrates Polish High-Performance Computing (HPC) centers and represents a direct contribution to building a secure, pan-European quantum communication infrastructure under the EuroQCI initiative. In parallel, actions are being taken to expand the horizons of the national network. The PIONIER-Q-SAT project envisions integrating the Polish QCI infrastructure into the space segment. Furthermore, work is underway on the QKD Network Germany-Poland-Czechia initiative, which will ultimately create cross-border quantum links integrating systems with neighboring countries.

In an era of rapid quantum computer development, establishing new, unbreakable data transmission security standards is becoming a global challenge. The inclusion of the PIONIER-Q initiative in the PARP report confirms that expanding the national quantum communication network is fundamental to the future of secure communication in Poland and Europe.

The full text of the “Monitoring Trends in Innovation” report is available on the official website of the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development.