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Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson says quantum threats to the blockchain are overwhelming today. He argues that the industry already knows how to build quantum-resistant systems, but lacks the efficiency and hardware compatibility to transform them.
In a recent podcast discussion, he called quantum “a big red flag,” adding that the real urgency will only come when military quantum benchmarks show credible progress.
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Quantum technology is not a real problem for cryptocurrencies
Hoskinson explained that blockchains can migrate to… Quantum-resistant encryptionBut the redemption in performance is great.
“The protocols to do this are about 10 times slower and about 10 times more expensive to run,” Hoskinson said.
He said that no network wants to sacrifice traffic to secure the future, explaining,
“I have a thousand transactions per second. Now I have to do a hundred transactions per second, but I am resistant to the amount. Nobody wants to be that person.”
Standards remain the gateway
Connect the founder of Cardano Delays in Quantum Security For standardization. Until the end of the government’s guidance, the sector risked adopting algorithms that by then would be obsolete or not supported.
He said we should wait for the US government to write standards, pointing to FIPS 203-206 under NIST’s Post-Quantum Cryptography Program.
Now hardware vendors have the direction to build silicon accelerator for post-quantum based algorithms.
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Hoskinson highlighted why this is important for blockchain performance: “If you choose a non-standard protocol… you will be 100 times slower than things that are accelerated by hardware.”
He claimed that NIST compliance ensures speed and security without locking networks in ineffective encryption for a decade.
This represents a turning point. Quantitative standards are now available, and the US government has begun to adopt them.
The big players in the infrastructure, for example Cloudflare has already integrated PQ key exchange in public traffic. It indicates that the pressure to migrate is slowly developing in all layers of Internet security.
Hoskinson’s view reflects a broader sentiment in crypto research. Quantum threats to blockchain signatures are real, but not actual.
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Financial security researchers and analysts still see CRQC regulations as a 2030s event rather than a current risk. The risks come from when you move, not if you move.
Now this time has a reference hour. Hoskinson said that “DARPA has a program called QBI, the Quantum Blockchain-Based Initiative.”.
According to him, the program evaluates 11 companies to determine whether practical quantum computing can exist at scale by 2033.
a description QBI is the clearest general standard to journalists following the progress, adding,
“The military needs to know – when do we upgrade our encryption and how do we do it?”
Recent studies support his caution. Although quantum research continues – from topological qubit works like Microsoft’s Majorana devices to large-scale implementations in communication infrastructure – there is no evidence to suggest an imminent collapse in cryptography.
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The post-quantum transition continues, but cost, latency and ecosystem fragmentation present obstacles for blockchains.
Why does it matter?
Hoskinson’s comments illustrate the often motivated controversy Speculation rather than engineering data. The design of a quantum-secure blockchain exists, but activating it too early slows down networks, increases transaction costs, and breaks developer tools.
As NIST standards expire and device roadmaps take shape, networks are moving toward planning, not panic.
Most experts believe that change will happen in the next decade. Hoskinson supports this view:
“Most smart people think there’s a strong possibility we’ll have something in the 2030s.”
Until then, efficiency, competition and support for hardware acceleration will determine when blockchains move to quantum-resistant cryptography.
