Quantum networking software provider Aliro Technologies and Austrian quantum scale-up zerothird have announced a joint quantum-safe networking deployment with Cisco. Conducted at the Cisco Photonics Center in Vimercate, Italy, the project demonstrates real-time orchestration, monitoring, and automated security controls for a live, entanglement-based quantum key distribution (eQKD) network running directly on production-grade routing hardware.
Automated Orchestration Meets Entanglement-Based Cryptography
Historically, quantum key distribution systems have operated as isolated, research-grade hardware assemblies requiring manual tuning. This demonstration transitions the technology into standard enterprise infrastructure by combining Aliro Orchestrator software with zerothird’s automated key-generation hardware. Operating over a live network, the configuration implements the BBM92 protocol to generate provably secure keys without transmitting sensitive parameters.
- Active Network Telemetry: Rather than relying on static security assumptions, Aliro’s control layer ingests real-time telemetry from zerothird’s end nodes.
- Continuous Monitoring: The system actively monitors eavesdropper detection, quantum bit error rates (QBER), polarization drift, and photon detection statistics to evaluate link integrity.
- Automated Remediation: If operational metrics degrade or exceed configured thresholds, the Orchestrator’s alerts engine triggers automated self-healing workflows, such as on-the-fly recalibration, traffic rerouting, or secure link termination.
Seamless Integration with Production Datacenter Infrastructure
To address the ultimate integration bottleneck, the generated quantum keys are fed directly into Cisco 8000 Series routers via the Cisco SKIP interface. This architectural hook enables the routers to establish live, quantum-safe MACsec encrypted sessions. By delivering finished, cryptographically secure keys directly to commercially available, rack-mounted hardware, the demonstration proves that eQKD networks can interface with standard enterprise datacenters without requiring custom application refactoring.
For organizations evaluating long-term security transitions, the deployment validates a complete, full-stack roadmap. zerothird’s underlying hardware platform manages the localized physical layer—handling sifting, polarization tracking, and error correction—while Aliro’s software manages the operational control plane. By embedding these functions into existing Cisco network routing protocols, the partners have shown that quantum-safe security can be scaled and monitored as a standard IT service.
Review the official corporate release detailing the physical topology of the testbed here.
July 14, 2026