Committee hears national-security warnings: move to post-quantum cryptography and counter global competition

Members of the House Science Committee pressed witnesses on national security implications of quantum computing and on timelines for migrating to post-quantum cryptography (PQC).

Pete Shadbolt of PsiQuantum told the committee that it is "pretty clear" large-scale quantum computers can be built and that those systems would threaten current public-key encryption such as RSA and elliptic-curve cryptography. He called NIST “the perfect organization” to develop PQC standards and emphasized that the rollout of new standards across banks, government, and critical infrastructure is a large operational exercise.

Committee members and witnesses repeatedly warned about the need to begin migration to quantum-resistant cryptography. When asked whether agencies and industry have time to prepare, witnesses said the transition should begin now because adversaries could capture and archive encrypted communications for later decryption. "We have to start moving our networks to post-quantum cryptography now and protecting our networks, urgently," a witness testified.

Lawmakers raised broader strategic competition with China. Witnesses cautioned that dollar-to-dollar comparisons of government spending can be misleading because other countries may be investing in facilities and campuses outside standard research-budget accounting; nevertheless, witnesses urged that the U.S. maintain or increase investments so it does not cede leadership. Several witnesses said that federal agencies—particularly DOD, DOE, NSF and NIST—should be prioritized in any reauthorization to ensure the United States can meet both defensive and offensive needs.

Committee members asked about practical next steps: accelerate implementation of NIST PQC standards, fund agency assistance to industry for migration, and sustain research into error correction and scaling of quantum machines. Witnesses recommended that agencies provide resources to help critical infrastructure operators adopt PQC and that Congress act promptly on reauthorization to preserve options for federal action.