On Oct. 15, Palm Beach State College and Florida Atlantic University switched on a fiber link that the college calls the first segment of Florida's statewide quantum-safe network. The connection runs between Palm Beach State in West Palm Beach and FAU in Boca Raton over Palm Beach County's dark fiber. It protects data with quantum key distribution hardware and software from IonQ.

Palm Beach State President Ava L. Parker announced the link on the evening of Wednesday, Oct. 21, at the college's Historic Building in downtown West Palm Beach. That building will be the future home of the college's Quantum Innovation Center. The college published the release on Oct. 22.

What quantum key distribution does

Encrypted data is only as safe as the keys that lock and unlock it. Quantum key distribution sends those keys between two points as particles of light. According to Palm Beach State's release, any attempt to intercept the key disturbs it, so the system can tell someone tried. Most encryption today depends on math problems that conventional computers can't solve quickly. A quantum-safe network is meant to stay secure as quantum computers get better at those problems.

The Palm Beach State to FAU segment is the first working piece of a larger plan. In April 2026, at the eMerge Americas conference in Miami, IonQ and Florida LambdaRail signed a master service agreement. Florida LambdaRail is the fiber network that serves the state's research and education institutions. The agreement's first phase calls for a quantum corridor of nearly 100 miles from Palm Beach County to Miami-Dade County.

Who built it

Palm Beach State led work on the first segment with Florida LambdaRail, FAU, Palm Beach County and IonQ. A $1 million defense infrastructure grant from FloridaCommerce, the state's economic development agency, helped pay for it.

Four people spoke at the announcement. Parker said the project shows how colleges, industry and government can work together. Jason Ball chairs the Florida LambdaRail board and is FAU's associate provost and chief information officer; he called the link a model for quantum-safe networking across the state. County Administrator Joseph Abruzzo said it returns value on the county's public fiber. Matt Cimaglia is a founding member of Florida Quantum and managing partner of Quantum Coast Capital; he said the link builds digital infrastructure that can speed up research and bring technology companies to the area.

Where it goes next

The next two connections are Miami Dade College and FAU's John D. MacArthur Campus in Jupiter. The release says both are expected within about three months. The Jupiter campus also houses the Herbert Wertheim UF Scripps Institute for Biomedical Innovation and Technology, the Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience and the FAU Stiles-Nicholson Brain Institute.

A second phase would bring quantum-safe protection to all of Florida LambdaRail. That network runs 1,540 miles of dark fiber for 13 university partners and also serves research, education, health care and local government groups. The release says this phase depends on funding, with Florida LambdaRail and FloridaCommerce planning it together.

Quantum Beach and the county's push

The day after the announcement, more than 350 people attended Quantum Beach 2026, which Palm Beach State describes as Florida's main statewide quantum technology conference. Parker spoke there about the college's role in training workers for quantum jobs.

In September, The Quantum Insider and the Business Development Board of Palm Beach County, working with FloridaCommerce and Florida Quantum, published a 94-page review of Florida's quantum sector. The release cites two of its findings: Florida universities do about $3.5 billion in research and development each year, and the state hosts three combatant commands and 21 major military installations. The report recommends making post-quantum security a state priority and building regional quantum hubs that work as one statewide system.

Following the project

Palm Beach State posts updates on the network and the Quantum Innovation Center at news.pbsc.edu. The college's Historic Building, the future home of the Quantum Innovation Center, is in downtown West Palm Beach. The next milestones to watch are the Miami Dade College and FAU Jupiter connections, which the college expects within about three months.

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