The test bed will start being set up in the DistriQ Quantum Innovation Zone in Sherbrooke in October 2023, followed by Montreal and Quebec City in early 2024. It is being managed by Numana, a non-profit organization that will be responsible for the deployment and operation of the test bed. The $10 million CAD in funding is being provided by Quebec Regional Economic Development which provided a starting grant of $2.2 million CAD in 2022 and is now adding an additional $4 million to the effort. Also, the Federal Government of Canada will supply an additional $3.6 million.
The test bed will be used by business and other organizations to experiment with quantum networking and is designed to be open, collaborative, adaptable and scalable. It will include terrestrial, aerial and satellite network components. Initially, the network will be set up a three separate metropolitan networks in each location with an eventually desire to tie them together in the future to establish a Quebec-wide quantum communication network. It will be the first quantum network being set up in Canada with other test beds being set up in the U.S. in Illinois, New York, Arizona, Massachusetts, Tennessee, and the Washington D.C. metropolitan area..
A press release announcing this new test bed has been provided by Numana and can be accessed here.
October 25, 2023