Two years after NIST finalized its first post-quantum cryptography standards, QoreChain says it has moved beyond migration plans by running the standardized algorithms across a live public blockchain. The quantum-safe Layer 1 launched its mainnet in June and is preparing for QOR exchange trading on August 20.
The project’s approach combines mandatory post-quantum signatures with a multi-VM architecture and AI-assisted development tools, while its upcoming QoreX wallet is designed to make the underlying cryptography largely invisible to users.
On August 13, 2024, the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) finalized its first three post-quantum cryptography standards after an eight-year international effort. The agency urged organizations to begin migration immediately, noting that integrating new cryptographic systems across existing infrastructure would take time.
Two years later, the blockchain sector is still largely discussing quantum resistance as a future infrastructure requirement. QoreChain is attempting to demonstrate what implementation looks like in production.
The Swiss-registered Layer 1, whose mainnet went live on June 7, 2026, uses ML-DSA-87 for digital signatures, ML-KEM-1024 for key encapsulation and SHAKE-256 for hashing. According to the project, these are deployed at the highest parameter sets it supports, corresponding to NIST's Category 5 security level.
From standards to a live blockchain
QoreChain's key distinction is that post-quantum protection is implemented at the protocol level rather than offered as an optional feature. Transactions use a hybrid signature combining ML-DSA-87 with the classical secp256k1 signature scheme. The project says the post-quantum component is mandatory, while the classical signature exists primarily for compatibility with established blockchain tooling.
The same cryptographic approach extends to validator infrastructure. This is particularly relevant to the so-called "harvest now, decrypt later" threat model, in which information protected by vulnerable cryptography could be collected today and attacked retrospectively if sufficiently capable quantum computers become available.
The project's July 2 milestone was intended to provide a public demonstration. QoreChain says a transfer was processed on the live network using ML-DSA-87 signatures, ML-KEM-1024 and SHAKE-256 at their maximum security parameters. The transaction can be independently inspected through the QoreChain block explorer.
The project's codebase is also publicly available. Its GitHub organization lists the core Layer 1 implementation, a dedicated PQC library, SDK, Rollup Development Kit and wallet adapter among its public repositories. The PQC repository describes implementations of ML-DSA, ML-KEM and SHAKE-256 across multiple programming languages.
Three virtual machines, one state layer
Quantum resistance is only one part of QoreChain's infrastructure strategy. The network combines EVM, CosmWasm and Solana Virtual Machine execution within a single state and consensus environment. This allows Solidity, CosmWasm and Solana applications to operate on the same chain rather than requiring separate networks connected through bridges.
QoreChain also positions AI as part of its developer stack. Its QCAI tools can generate and audit smart contracts across multiple blockchain environments, while the dashboard provides access to development and network-management tools.
The project has also sought to connect its cryptographic work with established standards and open-source communities. QoreChain identifies itself as a member of the PKI Consortium, Linux Foundation and Crypto Valley Association, while the PKI Consortium lists QoreChain Association among its members.
Making quantum-safe security invisible
The next stage is aimed at users rather than infrastructure operators. QoreX, QoreChain's non-custodial wallet, is designed to allow existing Web3 applications to interact with a quantum-safe wallet without requiring developers to rebuild their applications around new cryptographic standards.
According to QoreChain's documentation, native QOR transfers use an ML-DSA-87 and secp256k1 hybrid signature, while transactions involving external networks are clearly identified as relying on their respective classical cryptography. QoreX also uses explicit transaction approvals rather than blind signing.
The broader objective is to turn post-quantum migration from an infrastructure problem that users must understand into a security property handled underneath familiar wallet and application interfaces.
"When NIST published the post-quantum standards two years ago, the question stopped being whether the cryptography works and became who would actually ship it," said Liviu Epure, QoreChain's founder and CTO. "We built QoreChain so that the answer isn't a whitepaper, it's a block explorer link."
QOR is scheduled to begin exchange trading on August 20, 2026, at 13:00 UTC, one week after the second anniversary of NIST's finalized standards. The exchange is expected to be announced through QoreChain's official channels.
U.Today Editorial Team
Dan Burgin
