On 28-29 September 2026, the PQI – Portuguese Quantum Institute hosted the QIA Community Event 2026, “Building the Quantum Internet in Europe”, organised by the Quantum Internet Alliance (QIA) at Pavilhão do Conhecimento – Ciência Viva, in Lisbon.
The two-day event brought together researchers, technology developers, startups, industry and policymakers to accelerate Europe’s transition from quantum research to real-world deployment of the quantum internet. It was free to attend and also available online.
Day one: Europe is building the quantum internet
The event was opened by Prof. Helena Canhão, Secretary of State for Research and Innovation. Keynotes followed from Stephanie Wehner (QIA Director), Laurent Olislager (European Commission), Klaas Wierenga (GÉANT) and Diego R. Lopez (Telefónica), together with Yasser Omar, President of PQI, who presented Portugal’s Quantum Innovation Strategy and moderated a panel on how Europe can maintain leadership in the quantum internet. The afternoon showcased scientific success stories from the University of Innsbruck, ICFO and Delft University of Technology, and commercial success stories from Q*Bird, Welinq, Veriqloud and AQT.
Day two: European quantum internet ecosystem and industry
The second day mapped the ecosystem, with talks on EuroQCI, QSNP, QR.N and the space industry, and a panel on creating demand and engaging future industrial users, with speakers from ARQ Technologies, Qmunicate, AQLS, Orange and Credit Agricole Italia. Stephanie Wehner led a participatory session on QIA’s future plans, followed by a strategic discussion on the Quantum Internet Initiative (QI²). The programme closed with technical presentations on prototype quantum networks, use cases, solid-state qubit systems, frequency conversion and the interfacing of metro and long-distance networks, and with a group photo of the participants.
Yasser Omar, President of PQI, said: “Building a quantum Internet is one of the most fascinating scientific and technological challenges ahead, opening innovation opportunities, but also ethical, security, and sovereignty issues that need to be anticipated and addressed, and Portugal should be in the front row of this new adventure.”
Stephanie Wehner, Professor at TU Delft and Director of QIA, said: “The quantum Internet in Europe is entering a new phase: from research to innovation. To keep Europe’s lead, we must act quickly and decisively. It is a special pleasure to bring the European quantum Internet community together in Lisbon to drive this forward.”
PQI has been part of QIA since the start of the alliance, which is part of the EU Quantum Flagship and co-funded by the European Union’s Horizon Europe programme.
Thank you to all speakers, partners and participants who joined us in Lisbon. More information about QIA and its activities is available at quantuminternetalliance.org.
