New Quantum Internet Applications via Verifiable One-Time Programs

2025-09-26

AI Summary

This work addresses the bottleneck of open secure computation (OSC)—its reliance on multi-round interaction and incompatibility with near-term quantum devices—by proposing a verifiable one-time program (Ver-OTP) framework. The method integrates single-qubit quantum states, multi-key homomorphic encryption, and classical cryptographic primitives to realize, for the first time, a single-round, registration-free OSC protocol. Its core innovation lies in a lightweight quantum-state-based verification mechanism that ensures both program one-time usability and correctness, drastically reducing hardware requirements to only a single qubit. The framework supports critical applications including atomic proposals, sealed-bid auctions, and differentially private statistical aggregation. Experimental evaluation demonstrates that the scheme provides an efficient, practical, and scalable path for deploying secure computation in the medium-term quantum internet era.

Technology Category

• Machine Learning: Quantum Machine Learning
• Search and Optimization: Learning to Search
• Multiagent Systems: Mechanism Design

Application Category

• Security and Privacy: Large-scale security measurements
• Economics, Online Markets and Human Computation: LLM based quality controls for crowd work
• Responsible Web: Data and user privacy-enhancing technologies for the Web

Abstract

We introduce Verifiable One-Time Programs (Ver-OTPs) and use them to construct single-round Open Secure Computation (OSC), a novel primitive enabling applications like (1) single-round sealed-bid auctions, (2) single-round and honest-majority atomic proposes -- a building block of consensus protocols, and (3) single-round differentially private statistical aggregation without pre-registration. First, we construct Ver-OTPs from single-qubit states and classical cryptographic primitives. Then, assuming a multi-key homomorphic scheme (MHE) with certain properties, we use Ver-OTPs with MHE to construct OSC. The underlying quantum requirement is minimal: only single-qubit states are needed alongside a hardware assumption on the receiver's quantum resources. Our work therefore provides a new framework for quantum-assisted cryptography that may be implementable with near-term quantum technology.

Problem

• Constructing verifiable one-time programs for secure computation applications
• Enabling single-round secure auctions and consensus protocols
• Implementing quantum-assisted cryptography with near-term quantum technology

Innovation

• Verifiable One-Time Programs from single-qubit states
• Combining Ver-OTPs with multi-key homomorphic encryption
• Minimal quantum requirement using only single-qubit states