Tech Diplomacy Now: Are we on the edge of a quantum leap?
Recent White House initiatives may accelerate the emergence of quantum computing and post-quantum security solutions.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Tech Diplomacy Updates
Top News of the Week
Latest News
Technology Strategy and Policy
Korea Corner
Artificial Intelligence
Telecommunications Networks and Infrastructure
Critical Minerals
Synthetic Biology
Quantum
Robotics
Advanced Aerospace Technology
Semiconductors and Microelectronics
Energy and Climate
Opinion and Commentary
The Last Word
Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue Partners with ReElement Technologies for Secure Critical Mineral Supply Chains
The Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue announced a strategic partnership with ReElement Technologies, a leading U.S.-based innovator in rare earth and critical mineral refining. Partnership will help advance the shared objective of building resilient, transparent and diversified critical mineral supply chains that reduce dependence on adversarial sources across advanced tech sectors, including semiconductors and defense manufacturing.
Top News of the Week – Are we on the edge of a quantum leap?
The prospect of having useable and powerful quantum computers took another step last week when the White House issued two interconnected executive orders accelerating the development of quantum computers and the strengthening of post-quantum security measures.
Key Points:
As opposed to a conventional computer, a sufficiently powerful quantum computer could allow scientists and researchers to make breakthroughs that would be nearly impossible for computers that operate only with ones and zeros.
The White House’s actions represent a step forward from the 2018 National Quantum Initiative Act passed during the first Trump Administration and the Biden’s Administration’s National Security Memorandum 10, which created deadlines for post-quantum security measures.
While this points to huge opportunities, a sufficiently powerful quantum computer could break the public key cryptography that serves as the foundation of nearly all digital activity, including the securing of the nation’s most closely guarded secrets.
More on Background:
President Trump Signs Two Executive Orders on Quantum Computing and Accelerated Post-Quantum Cryptography Migration – Mayer Brown, June 24, 2026
Ushering in the Next Frontier of Quantum Innovation – The White House, June 22, 2026
Securing the Nation Against Advanced Cryptographic Attacks – The White House, June 22, 2026
Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Ushers in the Next Frontier of Quantum Innovation – The White House, June 22, 2026
Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Secures the Nation Against Advanced Cryptographic Attacks – The White House, June 22, 2026
Trump Seeks to Boost Quantum Computing with New Executive Orders – WSJ, June 22, 2026
DIVE DEEPER: Visit the Tech Diplomacy Academy to understand quantum computing, which promises exponential advancements in computational power, but also poses a significant security threat.
Latest News
America’s data-centre backlash puts the AI boom at risk – The Economist, June 23, 2026
This Megafactory Is a Test Case for the U.S.-China Tech Race – NYTs, June 23, 2026
China Takes Supercomputer Crown from U.S. for First Time Since 2017 – NYTs, June 23, 2026
Inside Micron’s Attempts to Reindustrialize the Dying American Heartland – Pirate Wars, June 22, 2026
Technology Strategy and Policy
Pax Silica, the dossier that could help bring Rome and Washington closer – Decode 39, June 22, 2026
EU joins US pact to break reliance on Chinese AI supply chains – FT, June 23, 2026
China hits back at US sanctions on tech giants, restricting its exports to American defense firms – AP, June 22, 2026
France takes step towards creating new innovation body – Science Business, June 18, 2026
Mobilizing for Techno-Economic War, Part 5: Transforming STEM Research Policy – ITIF, June 17, 2026
Texas A&M’s Bush School Welcomes the RISC Institute to Expand National Research Security – Texas A&M University, June 14, 2026
As Some A.I. Firms Go Public, China Is Being Shut Out – NYTs, June 11, 2026
Pentagon Accuses Alibaba, Baidu of Aiding China’s Military – Bloomberg, June 8, 2026
Korea Corner
Key facts on South Korea’s three chip and AI ‘mega projects’ – Reuters, June 29, 2026
South Korea announces more than $1 trillion AI, chip investment drive – Al Jazeera, June 29, 2026
Inside Lilly’s biotech startup factory – The Korea Herald, June 29, 2026
The High School Pipeline to South Korea’s Chip-Making Fortunes – NYTs, June 26, 2026
Artificial Intelligence
Palantir’s Karp bashes OpenAI, Anthropic token model: ‘Something has gone completely wrong’ – CNBC, July 1, 2026
Redeploying Fable 5 – Anthropic, June 30, 2026
Key facts on South Korea’s three chip and AI ‘mega projects’ – Reuters, June 29, 2026
South Korea announces more than $1 trillion AI, chip investment drive – Al Jazeera, June 29, 2026
Inside Lilly’s biotech startup factory – The Korea Herald, June 29, 2026
The High School Pipeline to South Korea’s Chip-Making Fortunes – NYTs, June 26, 2026
Telecommunications Networks and Infrastructure
How People in China Keep Outsmarting Anthropic’s Geolocation Restrictions – Wired, June 26, 2026
How Hackers Found a Back Door into the American Living Room – WSJ, June 17, 2026
Google exposes China espionage group that’s been lurking in networks undetected since 2023 – Cyberscoop, June 15, 2026
Chinese Grid Operators Maintain Offensive Cyber Programs – Jamestown Foundation, June 12, 2026
France Identifies Network of Fake News Sites Managed by Chinese State Media – Domino Theory, June 8, 2026
Critical Minerals
China’s critical metal imports soar 60% in push to control global supply – Nikkei Asia, June 27, 2026
Taiwan Unearths New Precious Metals Opportunity: ‘Urban Mining’ – Commonwealth Magazine, June 25, 2026
Kazakhstan enters rare earths, minerals race as China alternative – Nikkei Asia, June 19, 2026
Pentagon inks pair of rare earth mineral loans for $1.2 billion – Breaking Defense, June 18, 2026
From vulnerability to viability: Can a US-led push diversify the rare earth supply chain? – White & Case, June 11, 2026
Synthetic Biology
U.S. to Speed Up Early Drug Research to Better Compete with China – WSJ, June 22, 2026
Cross-border biotech deals grow more complex as US targets China investment links – SCMP, June 21, 2026
AI executives join call for stricter regulation of synthetic biology – Science, June 4, 2026
How Schmidt Sciences Is Building the Sensors Biomanufacturing Never Had – SynBioBeta, May 29, 2026
Quantum
The Coming Quantum National Security Crisis: China and Russia Are Harvesting Encrypted Secrets—and Getting Closer to Cracking Them – Foreign Affairs, June 17, 2026
World’s first national framework for quantum standards to boost UK leadership and trade in groundbreaking future tech – UK Government, June 16, 2026
Quantum key distribution research report: A study on quantum key distribution (QKD) technology and its cyber security implications. – UK Government, June 10, 2026
Robotics
Lutnick privately warned top executives of possible action against imported Chinese robots – Politico, June 23, 2026
China’s humanoid robots moving in as Asia’s workforce ages out – Asia Times, June 23, 2026
Can automation offset Japan’s military manpower shortage? – Japan Times, June 21, 2026
Chinese Autonomous-Driving Unicorn Targets $1 Billion Hong Kong IPO – WSJ, June 19, 2026
Robots will replace 700,000 delivery workers ‘sooner or later’, warns JD.com boss – FT, June 19, 2026
This Robot Just Climbed a 6,000m Peak. Everest Is Next. – Climbing, June 17, 2026
Advanced Aerospace Technology
Dawn Aerospace closes $25 million Series B for global reuseable space transportation expansion – Composites World, June 22, 2026
Vertical Aerospace’s radical eVTOL design is taking shape for 2028 – New Atlas, June 21, 2026
Air Force Buys New Generation of Drones Made to Strike Deep into Enemy Territory – WSJ, June 18, 2026
New Threats Drive European Drone and Counter-Drone Demand – Capstone, June 10, 2026
Semiconductors and Microelectronics
Netherlands Lobbies US to Drop Chip Curbs Targeting ASML – Bloomberg, June 24, 2026
Alan Estevez on Why Export Controls Work – The Wire China, June 21, 2026
Why the Memory Crunch Is Almost Impossible to Solve – WSJ, June 19, 2026
ASML Shares Slip on Report of U.S. Concern That China Has Its Tech – WSJ, June 19, 2026
US Tells ASML It’s Concerned China May Have Top Chip Tool – Bloomberg, June 18, 2026
Google Is Using Nvidia’s Playbook to Build a Rival AI Chip Business – WSJ, June 18, 2026
Samsung sees rising chip production requests from BYD, Google, AMD: sources – Nikkei Asia, June 17, 2026
Energy and Climate
China and the West are taking opposite paths on EV battery recycling – Rest of the World, June 24, 2026
Chevron Strikes Power Deal with Microsoft for West Texas AI Data Center – WSJ, June 21, 2026
Top US energy regulator pushes grids to overhaul data center power rules – Reuters, June 18, 2026
Opinion and Commentary
China’s Ambitious AI Blueprint: Beijing identifies key sectors for creating a ‘people-vehicle-home’ ecosystem. – Walter Russell Mead, WSJ, June 22, 2026
AI Is a Boon to Ambitious Recent Grads: The opportunities for entry-level employees are new and different. – Andrea Javor, WSJ, June 21, 2026
America Needs a National Robotics Strategy – James Wang and Mary Marsh, ITIF, June 18, 2026
The Chain of Peace: Do Supply Chain Chokepoints Deter War? – Phuong Pham and Melle Scholten, War on the Rocks, June 11, 2026
The Last Word
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
— U.S. Declaration of Independence
About: Tech Diplomacy Now
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