AUCloud is a highly respected Infrastructure-as-a-Service  provider selling high security sovereign cloud services to the Australian Government, Defence, Intelligence, and Critical National Industry  communities. NextDC, Australia’s largest data centre operator is a key strategic investor in AUCloud.

Arqit’s Federated Quantum System allows allied governments to have sovereign control of a private instance of Arqit’s technology, interoperable with the system of other participating allies. The main end user is government, but a local service provider is always required and Arqit is delighted that AUCloud will play this role and undertake support for Arqit in Australia.

The emerging nexus around AUKUS – the Australian, UK and US alliance for joint defence investment and innovation – is creating an impetus around cyber security, quantum, and Artificial Intelligence (AI). This has catalysed the joint development of an Australia-wide network of Sovereign Quantum Edge Cloud Services.

By addressing urgent threats to existing cybersecurity infrastructure and creating the foundations for critical future capabilities, Arqit’s partnership with AUCloud will deliver an immediate capability to Australian customers in the Defence, Government, Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) and Enterprise sectors, including Financial Services.

The relationship will also provide further opportunities for Australian industrial participation in space, cyber and quantum technologies.

This agreement reinforces activities around the UK-Australia Space Bridge agreement (signed between UK and Australia in 2021) where Arqit has been awarded a contract to prepare for Australian participation in Arqit’s Federated Quantum System (FQS) programme alongside UK and Canada. The work includes defining technical contributions to the mission, industrial supply chain and preparation for deployment of Arqit’s QuantumCloudTM technology, which delivers full independence to the customer as well as interoperability with the systems of other allied partners.

Phil Dawson, Managing Director and Co-Founder of AUCloud, said: “We are excited to build upon AUCloud’s sovereign cloud focus and collaborate with Arqit to launch this pioneering sovereign quantum edge cloud service, as Australia continues to reinforce its technical contributions to the space, cyber and quantum technology mission.”

Arqit Founder, Chairman and CEO, David Williams, added: “We are delighted to support the Australian, UK and US alliance for joint defence investment and innovation. The world needs stronger, simpler encryption, and it is important that allied countries work together to share the benefit of Arqit’s globally unique, transformational quantum safe encryption. We look forward to deepening our partnership with Australian industry in this effort.”