Quantum Universe & Cybersecurity: Einstein’s Unpredictability Explained

February 28, 2026 Priya Shah – Business Editor Business

Oxford-based Quantum Dice has secured a €2 million grant from the European Innovation Council (EIC) to advance its work on probabilistic computing, the company announced this week.

The funding will support Quantum Dice’s development of hardware systems that leverage the inherent randomness of quantum mechanics, a technology with significant implications for cybersecurity and energy-efficient computing. Founded in 2020 by Dr. Ramy Shelbaya, Dr. Zhanet Zaharieva, Wenmiao Yu, George Dunlop, and Marko von der Leyen, all originating from the University of Oxford’s quantum optics laboratory, Quantum Dice is already providing cybersecurity hardware systems to clients including BT.

“Quantum Dice’s pioneering technology leverages the unique features of quantum mechanics to create secure random numbers,” said Ramy Shelbaya, CEO and Co-Founder of Quantum Dice, in a statement released by The Oxford Trust. “This has huge potential for encryption and cybersecurity as we now employ random numbers literally every day, in…”

The company’s approach centers on generating truly random numbers by exploiting quantum properties, a departure from traditional methods that rely on algorithms and are therefore potentially vulnerable to hacking. The EIC grant will specifically focus on building hardware for probabilistic computing, based on the same core innovation that underpins its cybersecurity offerings.

Shelbaya, who was inspired to pursue physics after reading about the JET fusion experiment as a 12-year-old in Egypt, previously expressed that his decision to study the subject was initially “scary” due to a lack of role models. He now leads a company that has attracted seven-figure investment from European investors, in addition to the EIC grant funding.

The company’s work aligns with a growing recognition of the transformative potential of quantum technology across various sectors, including financial services, as highlighted in a recent World Economic Forum report produced in collaboration with Accenture.

Quantum Dice is currently located within the Oxford Centre for Innovation, part of The Oxford Trust, which recently reached a key milestone in the delivery of novel science and innovation space with the topping out of its Aspen Building on February 26, 2026.