Governance, Legislation, and Geostrategies
UN Warns AI’s Multi-Trillion Dollar Boom Could Widen Global Inequality Without Urgent Action
(AI Insider – 3 April 2025) Artificial intelligence is reshaping the global economy, and the UN warns that without urgent investment and inclusive governance, it risks deepening inequality rather than driving shared prosperity. AI’s benefits are concentrated in a few countries and firms, with just 100 companies—mostly in the US and China—accounting for 40% of global corporate R&D, leaving developing nations at risk of falling further behind. UNCTAD’s 2025 report urges governments to invest in digital infrastructure, skills, and inclusive governance to ensure AI supports sustainable development and global equity. – https://theaiinsider.tech/2025/04/03/un-warns-ais-multi-trillion-dollar-boom-could-widen-global-inequality-without-urgent-action/
Quantum Alliance Between India and Taiwan Could Bypass Global Tech Roadblocks, Report Suggests
(Quantum Insider – 3 April 2025) India and Taiwan could deepen cooperation in quantum technology to bypass export restrictions from major powers and strengthen both diplomatic and innovation ties, according to a report from the Observer Research Foundation. Taiwan has invested over US$259 million in a national quantum initiative since 2022, while India’s US$730 million National Quantum Mission focuses on computing, communication, sensing, and materials. The ORF report outlines joint R&D, academic exchange, and supply chain collaboration as pathways for strategic quantum engagement between the two countries. – https://thequantuminsider.com/2025/04/03/quantum-alliance-between-india-and-taiwan-could-bypass-global-tech-roadblocks-report-suggests/
(Trial) Measures for Science and Technology Ethics Reviews
(Center for Security and Emerging Technology – 3 April 2025) The following Chinese regulation describes the circumstances under which ethics reviews of scientific research must be conducted, and how the review process works. Under this regulation, every organization that undertakes potentially ethically problematic scientific research must establish an ethics review committee. The regulation lists human germ cell genetic engineering, invasive brain-computer interfaces, AI models that can manipulate public opinion, and highly autonomous decision-making systems that could endanger human life among the research topics that require ethics reviews. – https://cset.georgetown.edu/publication/china-science-ethics-review-trial-measures/
Security
Texas city warns thousands of utility payment site breach
(Jonathan Greig – The Record – 3 April 2025) At least 12,000 people had sensitive financial information stolen by hackers who secretly implanted malicious code into the utility payment website of the city of Lubbock, Texas. The city began sending breach notification letters to victims across the country this week, explaining that the people impacted include anyone who made a utility payment between December 18, 2024, and January 6, 2025. That includes those who paid utilities bills for water, wastewater, storm water and solid waste. – https://therecord.media/texas-city-warns-thousands-of-utility-site-breach
Frontiers
Utimaco Launches Post Quantum Security App Package
(Quantum Insider – 3 April 2025) Utimaco has launched Quantum Protect, a Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) application package for its u.trust General Purpose HSM Se-Series, enabling secure migration ahead of the anticipated 2030 quantum computing threat. Quantum Protect supports NIST-standardized PQC algorithms ML-KEM and ML-DSA, as well as stateful hash-based signatures LMS and XMSS, and includes patented state management and CNSA 2.0 compliance for government-grade security. The upgrade is field-activatable and includes a free simulator to test algorithms in real-world environments to provide crypto-agile and quantum-resistant security solutions. – https://thequantuminsider.com/2025/04/03/utimaco-launches-post-quantum-security-app-package/
Encoding Chemistry: Cleveland Clinic Uses Quantum Circuits to Aid in Predicting Proton Affinities
(Quantum Insider – 3 April 2025) Researchers at the Cleveland Clinic developed a hybrid machine learning model that combines classical molecular descriptors with quantum circuits to predict proton affinities efficiently and accurately. Their classical ensemble model achieved a mean absolute error of 2.47 kcal/mol, aligning with experimental uncertainty, while the hybrid model approached similar accuracy using fewer features and parameters. The quantum circuits served as feature encoders, transforming classical inputs into higher-dimensional representations that revealed stronger correlations with PA values than the original features. By integrating low-depth quantum circuits into the encoding process, the study demonstrates a practical role for quantum tools in enhancing classical workflows, especially considering current NISQ hardware limitations. – https://thequantuminsider.com/2025/04/03/encoding-chemistry-cleveland-clinic-uses-quantum-circuits-to-aid-in-predicting-proton-affinities/
DARPA’s ‘Landscape Scan’ Identifies Companies Targeting Industrially Useful Quantum Computers by End of Decade
(Quantum Insider – 3 April 2025) DARPA has selected 18 quantum computing companies for the first stage of its Quantum Benchmarking Initiative to assess whether any can build a fault-tolerant, utility-scale quantum computer by 2033. The program involves a three-stage process including technical validation, research plan review, and independent hardware testing by a government team. Selected firms span a range of architectures—including superconducting circuits, trapped ions, photonics, and silicon spin qubits—reflecting a broad scan of technologies under serious consideration. – https://thequantuminsider.com/2025/04/03/darpas-landscape-scan-identifies-companies-targeting-industrially-useful-quantum-computers-by-end-of-decade/
Startup Launches With Plan to Shield Blockchains From Quantum Threat
(Quantum Insider – 3 April 2025) A new venture, Project Eleven, has launched to secure Bitcoin and other digital assets against the future threat of quantum computing. The company warns that over $600 billion in Bitcoin stored in wallets with exposed public keys is already vulnerable to quantum attacks. Project Eleven has created a Q-Day Clock to track quantum computing progress and plans to develop tools for post-quantum cryptography and secure digital infrastructure. – https://thequantuminsider.com/2025/04/03/startup-launches-with-plan-to-shield-blockchains-from-quantum-threat/
Finnish Quantum Startup IQM Eyes €128 Million Amid Industry Surge
(Quantum Insider – 3 April 2025) Finnish quantum startup IQM is seeking to raise more than €128 million as investor interest in quantum computing surges and technical progress accelerates. IQM has raised $210 million to date, making it the second-best-funded quantum hardware company in Europe outside Big Tech, according to Sifted. The company builds full-stack superconducting quantum computers in-house and operates a chip factory with capacity for 20 systems per year. – https://thequantuminsider.com/2025/04/03/finnish-quantum-startup-iqm-eyes-e128-million-amid-industry-surge/