DDN Gets $300M Investment From Blackstone Tactical

The US government recently stood up a consortium of six Washington D.C.-based federal agencies to explore a range of quantum technologies necessary to create, demonstrate, and operate DC-QNet, a regional, multi-kilometer quantum network testbed. The six participating agencies span a range of US government mission agencies including the National Security Agency, the US Naval Research Laboratory, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. The program targets key underlying technologies needed to implement a metro[1]area quantum network that includes high-fidelity quantum memory, single photon devices, and related network metrology as well as mechanisms to support quantum entanglement between network nodes in a quantum computer. Details about project schedule and budget have not yet been made available, but each participating agency will be responsible for funding its research activities.

Two recent announcements highlight a growing trend towards partnership and innovation aimed at space-based technical computing and storage infrastructure. The former seeks a 100X increase in computational power via a High-Performance Spaceflight Computing (HPSC) processor, and the latter is exploring appropriate storage media for low-earth orbit satellite focal planes and RF sensor data.