Trump signs executive orders setting 2031 deadline for post-quantum migration

U.S. President Donald Trump has signed two executive orders to accelerate America's quantum innovation while protecting the country from quantum computing threats.

According to the official White House website, Trump issued Executive Orders 14409 and 14411 on Monday.

EO 14409, titled "Securing the Nation Against Advanced Cryptographic Attacks," focuses on mitigating the threats posed by large-scale quantum computers to current encryption standards.

"The advent of large-scale quantum computers, particularly in the hands of adversaries, will pose a significant threat to widely used cryptographic security systems," the order said. "Ongoing cyber activity against our Nation also presents the risk of adversaries collecting United States information now, and decrypting it later once large-scale quantum computers are operational."

The order directed federal agencies to transition key information systems and high-value assets to National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)-approved Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) for Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC).

For this transition, the order set hard deadlines — it mandated that all high-value assets and high-impact systems transition to PQC for key establishment by the end of 2030 and PQC for digital signatures by the end of 2031.

"Within 180 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of Commerce, through the Director of NIST, shall initiate a pilot project for PQC migration on an appropriate subset of information systems owned or operated by NIST, to be completed no later than December 31, 2027," the order added.

Threat to crypto

Quantum computing technology potentially poses a threat to cryptocurrencies, which are built on modern encryption.

Earlier this month, Coinbase's Independent Advisory Board on Quantum Computing and Blockchain pointed out in a report that around 7 million bitcoin sit in addresses exposed to a future quantum attack, which include Satoshi-era addresses but also active cold wallets managed by known exchanges.

Project Eleven, a cybersecurity startup focusing on post-quantum migration, also said in a May report that the inflection point of quantum computers breaking modern encryption, often referred to as "Q-Day," could come as early as 2030.

Entities behind major blockchains, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, and Tron, have launched efforts to eliminate potential risks posed by quantum computing.

Utilizing quantum technology

Meanwhile, EO 14411 — "Ushering In the Next Frontier of Quantum Innovation" — established a roadmap for the U.S. to utilize the commercial and research benefits of quantum information science and technology (QIST).

The order directed relevant agencies and authorities to update the national quantum strategy with policies designed to support the QIST ecosystem. It also established the Quantum Computer for Application Development and Discovery Science (QC-ADDS) effort, which aims to develop quantum computers at a scale capable of supporting scientific breakthroughs.

"Within 60 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of War shall identify at least three next-generation quantum sensor projects to prioritize to field these sensors by September 30, 2028," the order said.

The order also called for strengthening domestic quantum supply chains and training quantum-workforce.