Feature: Australia looks to AUKUS boost for quantum
Summary
- Australia is expanding quantum technology development under AUKUS Pillar 2, advancing sensing, navigation, timing, and cyber-security capabilities
- These efforts aim to deliver resilient, deployable quantum systems for contested environments while strengthening trilateral interoperability and industry growth
Quantum technology is one of the technological priorities under AUKUS Pillar 2 – a trilateral initiative by Australia, the UK, and US – and a major focus for the Australian Department of Defence (DoD). The country’s defence industry is advancing technologies in areas from navigation to cyberspace, while deepening co-operation with industry counterparts in the UK and the US.
Quantum is set to impact defence across a range of applications. As noted by industry body Quantum Australia, “Traditional technologies are reaching their limits. Quantum technologies are fast emerging as force multipliers, enabling resilient navigation, secure communications, and powerful new capabilities in sensing, simulation, and cryptography.”
The area is a significant priority for the DoD. A DoD spokesperson told Janes, “Australia is developing and integrating cutting-edge quantum technologies to support the achievement of [DoD] priorities, ranging from atomic clocks to quantum computers.”
Quantum sensing and measurement technologies have the potential to make position, navigation, and timing (PNT) systems more resilient, the spokesperson said, which would enable the Australian Defence Force (ADF) to continue to operate in contested environments.
For example, the spokesperson pointed to efforts in 2025 that saw the University of Adelaide and QuantX Labs contribute two quantum clocks each to trials in the US Naval Research Laboratory (NRL). The outcomes of this trial will inform analysis of how quantum clocks could be used in future defence operations, the DoD spokesperson said.
“AUKUS partners share a collective vision for a well-informed trilateral industrial base that is collaboratively solving operational problems and delivering capability at the pace of strategic relevance,” the spokesperson added.
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