Post-Quantum Competition is a cutting-edge hotspot in the current cryptocurrency and blockchain industry, referring to the competition among major public chains, projects, and foundations on 'who first/does better in achieving quantum-safe upgrades.' Why does 'Post-Quantum Competition' arise? Once quantum computers achieve sufficient scale of 'quantum supremacy,' they will pose a fatal threat to current mainstream encryption algorithms:

  • ECDSA / ED (Children's Health and Health and Social Disorders) 25519 (Elliptic curve signature algorithm used by Bitcoin, Ethereum, etc.)

  • RSA

  • Some hash functions

These algorithms will become vulnerable in the face of quantum computer's Shor or Grover algorithms, leading to:

  • Wallet private keys have been reverse-engineered

  • Signed transactions have been forged

  • Blockchain consensus mechanisms have been attacked

  • A large number of long-unused BTC/ETH addresses face risks (estimated that over 1.7 million BTC may be affected)

Although practical quantum computers may still take 5–10 years or even longer, the industry has entered a preventive competition phase: whoever completes the migration of 'Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC)' first will be able to establish the strongest security moat in the next decade, attracting institutional funds and developers. Current main players and progress in the 'anti-quantum competition' (latest update in January 2026)

  1. Ethereum Foundation

    • Has listed anti-quantum security as the highest strategic priority

    • Officially established a dedicated Post-Quantum team

    • Launched a million-dollar research grant, testnet, and wallet upgrade path

    • Plans to first test anti-quantum signatures (like lattice-based Dilithium, Falcon, or hash-based SPHINCS+) through Layer2, then gradually migrate to L1

    • Regarded as the most proactive and resource-rich leading public chain currently pushing forward

  2. Bitcoin ecosystem

    • Progress is slow (decentralized governance makes upgrades extremely difficult)

    • Developer community discusses soft fork or hybrid signature solutions, but it is expected to take 5–10 years to complete

    • Some voices believe that Bitcoin may achieve partial anti-quantum protection through Layer2 or sidechains

  3. Native anti-quantum projects (designed as anti-quantum from the beginning)

    • Quantum Resistant Ledger (QRL): The earliest and most well-known quantum-resistant blockchain, operational for many years

    • Abelian-style: The world's first post-quantum privacy-protecting L1 public chain, using NIST standardized lattice-based cryptography

    • Other projects based on Falcon and Dilithium are also active in small circles

  4. Institution and VC Views

    • Pantera Capital: Franklin Bi publicly stated: The race against quantum competition has officially begun, and the market severely underestimates the adaptability of blockchain.

    • Prediction: A few successful upgraded leading chains (like Ethereum) will produce a strong 'gravitational effect', attracting more TVL and developers, forming a winner-takes-all pattern.

    • The difficulty of upgrading the traditional financial system is greater, while blockchain may become a 'safe haven' in the anti-quantum era.

In summary, 'anti-quantum competition' is essentially the next generation of blockchain security competition:
Whoever can smoothly integrate the NIST standardized post-quantum algorithms (like Dilithium, Kyber, Falcon, SPHINCS+) onto the chain before the real quantum threat arrives will win the trust and value anchoring of the next decade. This is not short-term hype, but a battle for the underlying infrastructure that determines the long-term survival of public chains. Ethereum is currently one step ahead, but the entire industry is accelerating to catch up. Which project's anti-quantum roadmap do you favor the most? Wait for Ethereum to upgrade, or directly adopt a native anti-quantum chain? Welcome to discuss!#抗量子技术 #PostQuantum #Ethereum #crypto