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As AI and quantum computing rapidly reshape the digital landscape, enterprise and service provider networks are being forced to evolve faster than ever. Traditional encryption models, once considered unbreakable, are now under threat from quantum-enabled attacks and AI-driven exploits. The question facing global operators is no longer if they should prepare, but how soon they can deploy future-proof, identity-driven security models.
Sparkle, a leading global service provider, is helping to answer that question. Through a collaboration with Arqit, Adtran, Intel, Lanner, and Mplify, Sparkle has successfully demonstrated the industry’s first Quantum-Safe over Internet (QSI) architecture aligned with Mplify’s Zero Trust and Lifecycle Service Orchestration (LSO) frameworks.
Securing the Network with Quantum-Safe Architecture
The QSI architecture integrates post-quantum cryptography (PQC) with Mplify LSO APIs, creating an on-demand, API-driven network that embeds quantum-safe encryption and Zero Trust security as native features—not add-ons.
At the network edge, Arqit’s symmetric encryption engine generates quantum-safe keys dynamically, distributing them through Lanner’s universal CPE devices to secure data flows at line rate. Intel’s Zero Trust reference model ensures that service policies and identities remain consistent across the entire ecosystem, while Adtran’s networking technology supports seamless orchestration and policy enforcement.
The result? A live, 4,000-kilometer test between Barcelona and Athens showcasing quantum-safe symmetric encryption over IPsec tunnels provisioned in real time via Mplify LSO APIs. The trial validated not only the encryption model but also end-to-end identity assurance and service-level access control, as defined in Mplify W174: Product Attributes and Use Cases for Quantum-Safe Services.
Bringing Automation, Trust, and Compliance Together
This implementation embodies what Mplify stands for: interoperability, automation, and trust through open standards. By using LSO APIs for provisioning and assurance, Sparkle and its partners proved that quantum-safe services can be orchestrated automatically and delivered “as a Service” within a NaaS framework.
Such an approach offers immense value for enterprises and governments alike. From sovereign cloud environments to AI data pipelines and cross-border collaboration, the Sparkle QSI model enables secure-by-design, Zero Trust connectivity that complies with emerging mandates for post-quantum transition.
By decoupling trust from the underlying physical infrastructure and embedding identity validation at the edge, Sparkle has demonstrated a scalable, policy-driven model for protecting data in motion, an essential step as the world moves toward AI-powered operations and intelligent automation.
Key Results
Sparkle’s QSI demonstration achieved several industry firsts and milestones:
- First live quantum-safe encryption aligned with Mplify’s Zero Trust architecture.
- Zero-Touch Provisioning (ZTP) enabling on-demand service activation and deactivation.
- Real-time symmetric key exchange with configurable rotation policies.
- Hardware-based enforcement of access control and identity validation.
- Dynamic provisioning and assurance via LSO APIs—bridging the gap between security and automation.
What This Means for the Industry
This proof of concept marks an important inflection point for the NaaS ecosystem. It demonstrates that quantum-safe encryption is deployable today, not years away, and that the combination of AI-ready orchestration, standardized APIs, and certified trust frameworks can make advanced security practical at scale.
For enterprises, this also represents a new kind of opportunity: monetizing compliance and sovereignty through secure, on-demand network services.
The Road Ahead
As the industry enters the post-quantum era, initiatives like Sparkle’s QSI project show how collaborative innovation, anchored in Mplify’s LSO and certification frameworks, can turn cutting-edge security into a standard feature of next-generation NaaS offerings.
Quantum-safe networking isn’t a future concept; it’s a live, proven model for building secure, interoperable, and intelligent connectivity across the digital economy.
Learn More
- Explore Mplify’s LSO APIs.
- About Mplify LSO API Certification.
- About Mplify’s Cybersecurity Service Standards with SASE and Zero Trust.
- Download the Mplify NaaS Customer Experience White Paper.
- Join us at Mplify’s Global NaaS Event.