Solana quantum security put to the test as Foundation runs Project Eleven pilot on post-quantum transactions

In a move closely watched by crypto and security communities, the Solana Foundation is piloting advanced solana quantum security protections as fears over future quantum attacks grow.

Solana partners with Project Eleven on post-quantum testnet

The Solana Foundation has unveiled a new collaboration with Project Eleven, a post-quantum crypto security company, aimed at preparing the network for the coming era of quantum computing. According to a Tuesday announcement, the firm completed a full quantum threat assessment on Solana’s core infrastructure.

Moreover, Project Eleven has prototyped a fully functioning Solana testnet using post-quantum digital signatures. The announcement claims that this testnet demonstrated that “end-to-end quantum-resistant transactions are practical and scalable”, suggesting that such protections may be deployable at network scale.

This is a notable claim, as post-quantum cryptography is widely considered far more computationally demanding than traditional schemes. However, the Foundation did not disclose precise performance metrics or hardware assumptions for the pilot implementation.

Solana had not responded to requests for comment by publication, including questions on exactly which post-quantum encryption standard the testnet uses. That said, the pilot shows that solana quantum security is now a top strategic priority for the ecosystem’s core stakeholders.

NIST standards and performance trade-offs

The US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) formally endorsed three post-quantum encryption standards in August 2024. These new guidelines, published as Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 203, 204 and 205, provide a baseline for government and industry adoption.

In 2024, internet infrastructure giant Cloudflare ran a detailed cloudflare performance comparison between FIPS 204, Ed25519 (used by Solana), and RSA-2048. The tests found that FIPS 204 was nearly five times more expensive to sign but twice as fast to verify as Ed25519, highlighting the cost of stronger defenses.

However, the same benchmarks showed that RSA-2048 is slower to sign than both FIPS 204 and Ed25519, while being only slightly faster to verify than FIPS 204. These results underscore a consistent pattern in nist post quantum standards: signing operations tend to become more resource intensive, even when verification speeds improve.

Growing concern over quantum timelines

Solana Foundation vice president of technology Matt Sorg said the organization’s mission is to protect the world’s digital assets from quantum risk. Moreover, he framed the partnership with Project Eleven as part of a broader, industry-wide effort to harden leading blockchain ecosystems against future cryptographic breaks.

The initiative comes amid rising debate over when quantum computers could realistically threaten today’s public key cryptography. Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin recently said there is a 20% chance that quantum machines could break current schemes before 2030, arguing that proactive defenses are essential.

However, not all experts share that aggressive timeline. In November, cryptographer and cypherpunk Adam Back — cited in the original Bitcoin white paper — said that Bitcoin is unlikely to face a significant quantum threat for another 20 to 40 years. His comments illustrate how uncertain the roadmap for bitcoin quantum risk still is.

Ethereum, Bitcoin and governance challenges

Despite the uncertainty, major ecosystems are already thinking through their response strategies. Ethereum is often cited as having a relatively dynamic and fast-moving developer community, which could help it react more quickly to a quantum breakthrough.

By contrast, in late November, James Check, founder and lead analyst at on-chain analytics service Checkonchain, argued that Bitcoin’s governance may struggle with the social layer of any transition. More specifically, he emphasized that the technological side of quantum resistance is largely understood today.

However, Check warned that reaching consensus on drastic measures would be difficult. He claimed that “there is no chance we come to consensus to freeze” Bitcoin that is not moved to quantum-resistant addresses, even if older keys are at risk.

Such a failure, he suggested, could see a large volume of previously lost or inactive Bitcoin suddenly hit the market. Moreover, if old addresses that did not migrate were compromised, attackers could liquidate holdings at scale, with unpredictable effects on price and network trust.

What Solana’s pilot means for post-quantum readiness

Within this broader context, Solana’s collaboration with Project Eleven offers an early, concrete example of a high-throughput chain experimenting with post-quantum defenses in production-like conditions. The claim that end-to-end transactions can remain practical and scalable is especially relevant for networks prioritizing speed.

That said, many technical and governance questions remain unanswered. The choice of specific algorithms, migration paths for existing wallets, and hardware impacts will determine whether post-quantum upgrades can be deployed without undermining user experience or decentralization.

For now, the Project Eleven pilot signals that leading blockchain teams are no longer treating quantum risk as a distant theoretical issue. Instead, they are beginning to test how post-quantum signatures and standards like FIPS 203, 204 and 205 may fit into real-world blockchain architectures.

In summary, Solana’s post-quantum testnet, NIST’s 2024 standards, and ongoing debates among figures such as Vitalik Buterin, Adam Back, and James Check all point to a critical new front in crypto security. As research and pilots progress, the sector will need to balance stronger cryptography with performance, usability, and the complex governance required to execute any large-scale transition.