Naoris Protocol launched its quantum-resistant blockchain on Thursday, which it says is designed to ensure security even if powerful quantum computers in the future threaten to disrupt modern cryptography.
Nathaniel Szerezla, chief growth officer at Naoris Protocol, said: “Mainnet represents the transition from proof of concept to production infrastructure. The network has verified over 100 million transactions using post-quantum cryptography. This is not a roadmap commitment; it is a measured operational capability.”
The debut comes as traditional blockchains Bitcoin and Ethereum face the threat of a “quantum apocalypse.” Known as Q-Day, this is the moment in the future when quantum computers can break the encryption that protects most blockchains.
Concerns escalated further this week after Google reported that a sufficiently powerful quantum computer could break Bitcoin’s blockchain using fewer than 500,000 qubits, far fewer than previous estimates. Meanwhile, another report points to potential vulnerabilities in Ethereum that could put $100 billion on the blockchain at risk.
Because blockchain transactions, such as those on Bitcoin and Ethereum, are permanent, any weakness today can be exploited by future quantum computers with the necessary capabilities.
Naoris is constructed differently
This is where Naoris stands out. It was built from the ground up using National Institute of Standards and Technology-approved post-quantum cryptography and algorithms to secure accounts, transactions and digital assets, according to a press release shared with CoinDesk.
The system incorporates “irreversible safe transitions.” This means that once users adopt post-quantum keys, they must use quantum-resistant signatures to conduct transactions. The protocol automatically blocks transaction attempts using traditional, vulnerable encryption methods, helping to protect assets even if classic cryptography becomes vulnerable.
What’s more, while its quantum-resistant security is currently only available on its own mainnet, the system is built with a broad scope in mind for potential future support for wallets, exchanges, layer 2 networks, and DeFi platforms.
Mainnet is launched by a group of invitation-only strategic participants who operate the first validator nodes and form the network’s initial trust layer, laying a solid foundation for wider expansion. The protocol was tested at scale during an extensive testnet phase, during which time more than 603 million threats were detected and mitigated, more than 106 million post-quantum transactions were processed, more than 3.3 million wallets were created, and more than 1 million secure nodes were activated globally.
The protocol’s native token, NAORIS, drives the way the network works, helping to secure transactions, enforce rules and build trust among users. As of press time, the token has a market capitalization of $36 million.