BTQ Technologies launched a Bitcoin testnet implementing post-quantum protections designed to mitigate future threats from powerful quantum computers.

Protocol changes and standards

The deployment implements BIP-360 and introduces a new output type based on P2MR (Pay-to-Merkle-Root), replacing aspects of Taproot that may reveal public keys on-chain under certain conditions.

P2MR records spending commitments directly in a Merkle root, which preserves compatibility with Lightning Network and BitVM while reducing exposure to cryptanalysis by Shor's algorithm.

For signature security, the testnet integrates post-quantum signatures using Dilithium, the standard endorsed by NIST for post-quantum digital signatures.

Network rollout and testing parameters

Developers report that more than 50 miners have joined the network and that the chain has produced over 100,000 blocks so far to validate the changes under load.

Block generation on the testnet was shortened to 1 minute to accelerate testing cycles and observe behavior across consensus, mempool, and layer-two interactions more quickly.

Goals and industry remarks

The effort represents a live implementation of the BIP-360 proposal with the explicit goal of hardening Bitcoin against practical risks that may arise with future quantum hardware.

Olivier Roussy Newton, CEO of BTQ Technologies, said that the industry cannot afford to wait for a real crisis before adopting protective measures and urged proactive testing.

Compatibility and next steps

According to the project team, the changes aim to maintain support for existing layer-two ecosystems while enabling cryptographic agility toward post-quantum schemes where appropriate.

Further monitoring and interoperability tests are planned to assess impacts on wallets, routing, and BitVM integrations before any consideration of upstream deployment.