Project Eleven CEO Claims Quantum Labs Are Withholding Research to Avoid Panic

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Alex Pruden said labs directly informed the post-quantum security firm they are suppressing sensitive findings, expanding on earlier remarks citing government guidance.

Key points

• Project Eleven CEO Alex Pruden claims quantum labs directly told his firm they are withholding certain research to prevent public panic.
• Pruden did not identify specific laboratories, disclose the withheld findings, or name the entities requesting suppression.
• Google acknowledged in a March 31 post that it withheld circuit details from an elliptic curve study after engaging with the U.S. government.

Quantum computing facilities are intentionally withholding select breakthrough research findings from the public to avoid triggering broad panic, according to Alex Pruden, co-founder and chief executive officer of post-quantum security firm Project Eleven [1]. Speaking in an Unchained livestream recorded on Oct. 19, Pruden described the situation as "a fact" communicated directly to his firm [1].

Pruden stated that labs have chosen not to disclose specific findings either by choice or because outside parties instructed them to remain quiet [1]. "We've been told by quantum labs that they are not publishing certain results because they've been told not to or because they're choosing not to," Pruden said, adding that the objective was to avoid creating panic [1]. Pruden did not identify the specific laboratories, specify the undisclosed research findings, or reveal who instructed the entities to withhold the data [1].

Prior Disclosures and Industry Context

The statements follow earlier comments Pruden delivered on Oct. 8 during a TOKEN2049 side event in Singapore, where he claimed that major quantum enterprises, including Google, engage in self-censorship under government guidance [1]. Public records reflect that Google previously consulted with authorities regarding cryptographic research [1]. In a March 31 blog post assessing the quantum resources required to crack 256-bit elliptic curve cryptography, Google disclosed that it "engaged with the U.S. government" and issued a zero-knowledge proof rather than publishing the underlying circuits, aiming to prevent bad actors from obtaining an actionable roadmap [1].

Pruden's Oct. 19 remarks came amid broader industry deliberations regarding cryptographic vulnerability, following an Oct. 7 proposal by Ethereum Foundation researcher Justin Drake urging the digital asset sector to prepare a "bunker mode" against mathematical breakthroughs [1]. During the same discussion, Project Eleven co-founder Conor Deegan noted that the firm could not confirm whether quantum entities are sitting on active cryptographic breaks [1]. Project Eleven, which introduced its institutional post-quantum custody platform Strongpoint on Oct. 7, plans to take that platform to production in the fourth quarter of 2026 [1].

Sources

1. Project Eleven CEO Calls it ‘a Fact’ that Quantum Labs Are Withholding Results — Primary document (discovered)

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