Aptos Proposes Post-Quantum Signatures With AIP-137

Blockchain network Aptos is moving toward a post-quantum signature option, reflecting growing concern that advances in quantum computing are no longer purely theoretical and could eventually affect how blockchain networks secure accounts and transactions.

On Thursday, Aptos outlined a proposal to introduce post-quantum signatures, addressing the network’s reliance on digital signatures for ownership, transaction authorization and overall security. 

While existing cryptographic schemes remain secure against classical computers, researchers warn that sufficiently powerful quantum machines could one day forge them, potentially compromising account security retroactively.

“Quantum computing is not a distant spectre anymore,” Aptos Labs wrote in a post on X, pointing to early discussions around quantum scaling by IBM and growing regulatory momentum, including the publication of post-quantum cryptography standards by the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).

“This matters for networks like Aptos because Cryptographically Relevant Quantum Computers (CRQCs) can make today’s signature schemes forgeable, possibly breaking security models,” the post said.

In response, developers have proposed AIP-137, an Aptos Improvement Proposal authored by cryptographers at Aptos Labs, which would add support for a post-quantum signature scheme at the account level.

If approved through governance, AIP-137 would introduce SLH-DSA, a hash-based digital signature scheme standardized as FIPS 205, as an optional account signature type. The change would make Aptos one of the earliest production blockchains to natively support post-quantum accounts.

However, existing accounts would remain unaffected. Post-quantum accounts would be opt-in only, allowing users to adopt selectively. 

Aptos is one of the larger layer-1 proof-of-stake blockchains, designed primarily to support decentralized applications. Earlier this year, its head of ecosystem, Ash Pampati, told Cointelegraph that consumer-focused applications were gaining traction on the network, particularly those blending elements of Web2 and Web3.

As Cointelegraph previously reported, Aptos has also emerged as a venue for tokenized real-world assets, with asset managers including Franklin Templeton and BlackRock deploying products on the network.

Related: Google announces quantum advantage, 13,000 times faster than supercomputers

The race against quantum

While many in the crypto industry argue that quantum threats to blockchains, particularly Bitcoin, remain years away, networks are increasingly taking preparatory steps, with Aptos far from alone in doing so.

Earlier this month, Solana tested quantum-resistant transactions on a dedicated testnet, an experiment aimed at evaluating how post-quantum signature schemes could be integrated into its transaction model without disrupting existing accounts.

Within the Bitcoin community, a smaller but vocal group of developers, researchers and fund managers has also begun pushing for faster progress on quantum-resistant cryptography.

Some have rallied around BIP-360, a proposed Bitcoin Improvement Proposal that would introduce quantum-resistant signature options. However, the idea remains in its early stages and is subject to debate.

Others, including early Bitcoin figure Adam Back, have dismissed near-term quantum concerns as a form of fear, uncertainty and doubt, or FUD, arguing that Bitcoin does not rely on encryption for its core security model. Instead, Bitcoin uses digital signature schemes and cryptographic hash functions, which are not imminently threatened by practical quantum computers.

Related: Are quantum computers stealing Bitcoin? Inside Josh Mandell’s claim and the pushback