The IT Nerd

Governor Greg Abbott appointed Victor Fishman, Ph.D. and Lin Zhou, Ph.D. to the Quantum Initiative Advisory Committee for terms set to expire on January 31, 2027. Governor Abbott also appointed Richard “Ross” Coffman for a term set to expire on January 31, 2029, and appointed John Josephakis and Jeff Prevost, Ph.D. for terms set to expire on January 31, 2031. The Initiative will develop a strategic plan for the promotion of the quantum economy in this state.

Victor Fishman, Ph.D. of Allen is the executive director of the Texas Research Alliance. He is a board member on the Dallas Innovation Alliance and the North Texas Innovation Alliance and a member of the National Defense Industrial Association. He is a veteran of the Vietnam war, having served in the U.S. Army Ordnance Corps. Fishman received a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from the University of Miami, a Master of Science in Chemistry from Clemson University, and a Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry from The University of Texas (UT) at Austin.

Lin Zhou, Ph.D. of Lubbock is the vice president, chief information officer, and executive director for AI and Quantum Computing at Texas Tech University. He is a founding member of the Texas Quantum Summit and serves on the board of directors for the Lonestar Education and Research Network. Additionally, he is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) by the Project Management Institute and served on the Texas Department of Information Resources State Strategic Plan Advisory Committee. Zhou received a Bachelor of Science in Physics from Nanjing University and a Doctor of Philosophy in Physics from the University of Glasgow.

Richard “Ross” Coffman of Austin is the president of Forward Edge AI. He received an Honorable Discharge from the United States Army. Coffman received a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Government from Centre College, a Master of Business Administration from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, and he completed a National Security Fellowship at the Harvard Kennedy School.

John Josephakis of Dallas is a global vice president at NVIDIA. Josephakis received a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from UT Austin with a minor in Mechanical Engineering and a Master of Business Administration in Finance from St. Edwards University.

Jeff Prevost, Ph.D. of San Antonio is an associate professor at UT San Antonio where he currently serves as a vice president for the Cyber Manufacturing Innovation Institute as well as the executive director for the Open Cloud Institute. He is a founding member of the Texas Quantum Summit and represents UT San Antonio on the UT System Quantum Planning Committee. He is a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. Prevost received a Bachelor of Science in Economics from Texas A&M University and a Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical Engineering from UT San Antonio.

ForwardEdge-AI today announced the appointment of Dionis Taveras as Senior Vice President, Sales & Channel Partners, Commercial. In this role, Taveras will lead channel, reseller, OEM, and strategic partnership initiatives to accelerate market adoption of the company’s advanced cybersecurity and quantum resilient solutions.

Taveras joins Forward Edge-AI with extensive experience building and scaling global partner ecosystems and go to market strategies. Most recently, he served as Global Head of Alliances and GTM for Project Fort Zero at Dell Technologies, where he led strategic partnerships, contract negotiations, and commercialization efforts supporting Zero Trust innovation and large scale enterprise adoption.

At Forward Edge-AI, Taveras will focus on expanding commercial reach and accelerating the introduction of Isidore Quantum and other products in the company’s portfolio ahead of the anticipated quantum computing inflection point. His leadership will play a critical role in scaling revenue, strengthening partner networks, and delivering secure, next generation solutions to global markets.

Taveras is recognized as a technology innovator and global partnership leader, with a strong background in networking, security, and enterprise infrastructure. His career spans engineering, solutions architecture, and executive leadership, enabling organizations to deliver secure, connected, and scalable systems.

Forward Edge-AI today announced the release of The Global PQC Implementation Playbook, a structured twelve-month roadmap designed to guide governments and enterprises through full-scale post-quantum cryptography (PQC) adoption.

The Playbook provides a phased implementation framework spanning governance formation, cryptographic asset inventory, proof-of-concept validation, AI-driven orchestration, workforce certification, production deployment, and continuous readiness auditing. It translates policy mandates into executable operational steps.

The release comes as international regulatory alignment accelerates. The European Union has established formal migration expectations beginning in 2026 under NIS2 and DORA, with enforcement mechanisms and financial penalties for non-compliance. The EU post-quantum roadmap and associated regulatory frameworks are publicly documented and continue to shape global migration timelines. The NIS2, DORA, and EU roadmap can be accessed here. 

The Playbook outlines seven sequential phases:

1. Governance & Strategic Planning: Establishes national or enterprise-level PQC oversight structures aligned with digital trust policies.
2. Cryptographic Asset Inventory: Uses structured assessment to map RSA, ECC, and legacy dependencies across critical systems.
3. Proof of Concept (PoC) Demonstration: Deploys Isidore Quantum? or comparable programs devices in controlled environments to validate integration, performance, and uptime.
4. Cassian or comparable programs Orchestration Enablement: Implements AI-driven fleet management for automated key generation, rekeying, and zeroization.
5. Workforce Training & Capability Building: Certifies personnel on PQC operations, AI-assisted management, and compliance tracking.
6. Full Production Deployment: Transitions prioritized infrastructure to quantum-safe cryptographic states.
7. Continuous Monitoring & Readiness Auditing: Maintains long-term readiness through AI-driven monitoring, quarterly assessments, and compliance reporting.

The Playbook aligns with established governance and risk frameworks, including Quantum Readiness Index (QRI) domains and CSA 2025 standards, enabling organizations to demonstrate measurable quantum resilience at each stage of adoption.

Designed for government agencies, defense ministries, critical infrastructure operators, financial institutions, and multinational enterprises, The Global PQC Implementation Playbook provides a repeatable model for operationalizing quantum-safe migration without disrupting active systems.

A link to the full Playbook is available here: The Global PQC Implementation Playbook

Forward Edge-AI today announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to collaborate on business opportunities that expand space-enabled connectivity and accelerate new space infrastructure initiatives across the Indo-Pacific and ASEAN region.

Under the MOU, Forward Edge-AI will provide services including: turnkey satellite design, manufacturing, post quantum cybersecurity, and launch services. They will also include support to secure permitting for ground- or sea-based facilities for spacecraft assembly, launch, and landing. Angkasa-X will focus on regulatory authorization, funding, provisioning, constellation management, space situational awareness, orbital adjustments, and deorbiting. They will also lead marketing and promotion of satellite-enabled internet access, positioning, tracking, and IoT services delivered via a LEO satellite internet constellation.

The collaboration aligns with Angkasa-X’s stated mission to establish an ASEAN space economy through its A-SEANLINK satellite constellation and improve rural connectivity using LEO satellite technology. It also builds upon Angkasa-X’s public ITU-R space filing activity associated with “AX_A-SEANLINK” materials. 

In addition, the parties intend to jointly promote access to the Palau Space Port for the aerospace industry and pursue additional projects (including opportunities such as “Golden Dome”) that advance space technologies and economic partnerships.

Separately, Forward Edge-AI and Angkasa-X also executed a Teaming Agreement to jointly respond to agency task orders under the SHIELD contract vehicle, with Forward Edge-AI serving as prime and Angkasa-X as a proposed subcontractor.

Andrea Gwynn has been selected for inclusion in Marquis Who’s Who. As in all Marquis Who’s Who biographical volumes, individuals profiled are selected on the basis of current reference value. Factors such as position, noteworthy accomplishments, visibility, and prominence in a field are all taken into account during the selection process.

Ms. Gwynn’s distinguished career in information technology (IT) and federal service spans three decades, marked by progressive leadership roles and a commitment to innovation. In October 2025, she assumed the position of chief information officer at Forward Edge-AI Inc., where she manages end-user services for all employees and ensures that information technology requirements are met by providing access to essential systems, applications and collaboration tools supporting engineering, manufacturing and product production.

Delivering robust artificial intelligence solutions to its clients, Forward Edge-AI Inc. specializes in post-quantum cryptography, data modernization, integration, and engineering to strengthen secure data workflows and enable advanced insights. Ms. Gwynn’s expertise in information technology strategy and innovation has been instrumental in advancing the organization’s secure, scalable technological capabilities.

Before her role as the chief information officer of Forward Edge-AI Inc., Ms. Gwynn had spent 25 years in federal service. In 2025, she dedicated her efforts as a veteran, writer and advocate for veteran empowerment and transition in Killeen, Texas. Her advocacy work focused on supporting veterans as they navigated the complexities of post-military life.

Ms. Gwynn’s federal service is underscored by a series of significant appointments within the U.S. Army. From 2023 to 2025, she served as a deputy chief information officer at the U.S. Army Futures Command in Austin, Texas, where she played a pivotal role in shaping the command’s digital transformation initiatives. Between 2020 and 2023, Ms. Gwynn was the director of information technology services (G6) at the same command, overseeing critical infrastructure projects and ensuring operational readiness.

Among her earlier assignments, Ms. Gwynn served as an IT integrator with the 106th Signal Brigade in Austin from 2019 to 2020 and as the business operations branch chief at the Joint Base San Antonio Network Enterprise Center between 2018 and 2019. Among other roles, she began her civilian federal career as an IT specialist at Fort Hood Network Enterprise Center from 2010 to 2011.

Ms. Gwynn’s military service is particularly notable for her tenure as a chief warrant officer two (251A) in the U.S. Army from 2001 to 2009. As a combat veteran with two deployments to Iraq, she played a key role during her first deployment, establishing IT communications for the First Armored Division Command. Ms. Gwynn was integral to building out servers, networks and services that supported combat operations in Iraq, a contribution that remains a source of immense pride.

Ms. Gwynn’s academic foundation includes a Bachelor of Science in marketing with a concentration in marketing management from Northwood University in 1996. She further enhanced her professional credentials by completing coursework in information technology project management through a certification program at Villanova University.

Beyond her professional achievements, Ms. Gwynn is actively involved with civic organizations, including Disabled American Veterans, where she volunteers and supports fellow veterans.

Ms. Gwynn’s exemplary service has been recognized through numerous awards, including the Women of Color Rising Star in Technology Award in 2024. Honoring her service, she was decorated with a Superior Civilian Service Award, Civilian Service Achievement Medal from the U.S. Army, six Army Achievement Medals, three Army Commendation Medals, the Army Good Conduct Medal, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal and, among others, a Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal. Ms. Gwynn credits her success to hard work, dedication, and a passion for her field, along with the enduring guidance and encouragement of her parents.

Constantly inspired by her family, Ms. Gwynn’s husband is a retired disabled veteran who served for over 20 years in the U.S. Army. Their daughter currently serves in the U.S. Army in Germany alongside their grandson, and their son serves in the U.S. Air Force in Washington. Eager for the future, she plans to continue her education toward a higher degree and seeks opportunities for public speaking and mentorship, particularly for women in technology, veterans and active service members, reflecting her enduring commitment to empowering others within her community and profession. Ms. Gwynn has also begun writing a memoir following her retirement and is actively pursuing publication.

Forward Edge-AI today announced the appointment of Alan R. Seid as Vice President of International Sales, reinforcing the company’s focus on disciplined international growth across allied governments, public-sector partners, and strategic commercial markets.

Seid brings decades of experience spanning government leadership, international negotiation, and technology-driven economic development. He served in the House of Delegates of Palau from 1989 to 2000 and later in the Senate of Palau. He also served as President of the Asia Pacific Parliamentary Union, where he built enduring relationships with senior government and business leaders across the region.

Following his legislative service, Seid has remained active in large-scale infrastructure, digital finance, and technology initiatives throughout the Pacific and Asia. His work has included advancing digital financial systems, supporting blockchain adoption, and advising on sustainable development and climate resilience programs with regional and international stakeholders.

As Vice President of International Sales, Seid will lead Forward Edge-AI’s global market strategy, focusing on government, defense-adjacent, and critical infrastructure opportunities. He will oversee strategic partnerships and market entry efforts in priority regions, including the Pacific Islands, Southeast Asia, and Europe.

For more information about Forward Edge-AI and its solutions, please visit forwardedge.ai.

As quantum cybersecurity gains global traction, The Quantum Insider has declared 2026 the [Year of Quantum Security], a year-long global effort backed by the FBI and NIST, launching January 12th in Washington, D.C. The program will align policy, security practices, and coordination across the quantum ecosystem, focusing on post-quantum cryptography (PQC), quantum resilience, and IP protection.

Closely related, the White House is expected to release critical executive action mandates on quantum and post-quantum cybersecurity within the next two weeks. These actions will build directly on work already underway in the government.

Forward Edge-AI’s Isidore Quantum® system, co-developed with the U.S. government and backed by Microsoft and Lumen, is CNSA 2.0–compliant, FIPS 140-3 certified, and has been tested by every U.S. military branch. The company has already completed 32 government and commercial pilot programs that confirm scalability across defense, telecom, and critical infrastructure, proving post-quantum migration is operationally feasible now.

Lt. Gen. Ross Coffman (U.S. Army, Ret.), President of Forward Edge-AI, states: 

“It’s about time we woke up. The IC community identified this threat years ago. For the FBI and NIST to get behind the Year of Quantum Security, it means they are putting the full power of the purse and policy behind protecting the US against clear and present danger. This is a huge step for cybersecurity in a post quantum world. It affects every vertical – not just the military. It’s cliche to say that everyone from Main St. to Wall St. needs PQC protection but it affects your grandma’s ATM.”

“Other countries in Asia have sped up post-quantum cybersecurity adoption because they live next door to the largest cybersecurity threat. They know it will take a year to implement.

The government began the post-quantum migration years ago, and we’ve proven that path works, across land, air, sea, and space,” said Coffman, “We weren’t waiting for NIST timelines. Our plug and play hardware is deployed now, giving agencies a practical path to compliance.”

This will be interesting to see how this plays out as cybersecurity hasn’t been a top of mind item with this administration.

Forward Edge-AI today announced its global channel partner ecosystem, adding more than two dozen new partners across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the Middle East. The channel expansion supports rising demand for deployable post-quantum cybersecurity solutions as government mandates and enterprise risk timelines accelerate. 

Furthermore, The Quantum Insider has declared 2026 as the Year of Quantum Security, “a coordinated, year-long global effort focused on post-quantum cryptography, quantum resilience, and the responsible protection of quantum technologies and the intellectual property that underpins them…as quantum systems move toward operational use.”  

Forward Edge-AI’s new partners include a joint venture in Japan, value-added resellers, systems integrators, managed security service providers, and regional distributors serving defense, critical infrastructure, telecommunications, healthcare, and industrial markets. Together, they extend Forward Edge-AI’s ability to deliver post-quantum protection at scale, particularly in environments where latency, operational continuity, and regulatory compliance are critical. Channel partners such as Accrete – its joint venture partner in Japan,Aspiration, Cubic, Lumen, Microsoft, Wisecube and others are servicing international government contracts, and customers in finance, healthcare, space, manufacturing, insurance and critical infrastructure. 

Channel Expansion Addresses Immediate Post-Quantum Readiness Gaps

The channel program is centered on Isidore Quantum®, Forward Edge-AI’s plug-and-play hardware-based post-quantum encryption platform designed to secure data in transit without requiring software rewrites, PKI dependencies, or network re-architecture. The platform is a zero trust, protocol-agnostic CNSA 2.0 compliant system designed to operate across legacy and modern environments, including operational technology and constrained networks. It has attracted many channel partners because it offers 60% less TCO than similar systems with attractive pricing models for the channel.  

As governments and regulators transition from planning to execution of post-quantum cryptography, many organizations lack the internal expertise and operational capacity to deploy new cryptographic infrastructure within tight timelines. Channel partners play a critical role in bridging that gap, providing implementation, integration, and managed services aligned with customer environments.

“Post-quantum security is a primary concern of myriad governments that understand the imminent threats,” said Eric Adolphe, CEO of Forward Edge-AI. “NIST has estimated that more than 20 billion quantum resistant devices need to be deployed by 2027. Organizations are being asked to act now, but most do not have the luxury of multi-year transformation programs. Our partners are essential to delivering solutions that work immediately at scale.”

Built for High-Assurance and Regulated Environments

Unlike software-only post-quantum approaches, Isidore Quantum is delivered as a deployable hardware platform designed for high-assurance use cases, including defense, critical infrastructure, and regulated enterprise environments. The system provides quantum-resistant protection for data in motion while maintaining operational transparency for existing applications and networks.

The Isidore platform has been validated through a combination of government-led testing, operational pilots, independent third-party evaluation, and formal certification milestones. This validation has been tested across defense, telecommunications, and enterprise pilots and is designed to meet stringent performance and reliability requirements, including low latency and silent operation. Its exportable design also enables deployment across international and coalition environments where traditional cryptographic solutions face regulatory or operational barriers.

For channel partners, Forward Edge-AI supports multiple go-to-market models, including resale, managed services, and integration into existing security offerings. The program includes technical onboarding, partner enablement, and direct engineering support to ensure operational readiness.

Positioning the Channel for the Quantum Transition

Forward Edge-AI expects continued growth in partner demand as post-quantum requirements increasingly influence cybersecurity procurement decisions across both public and private sectors. The company plans to onboard additional regional partners and enable them throughout 2026.

Forward Edge-AI announced today that it has been selected as one of the Prime Contractor awardees under the Missile Defense Agency’s (MDA) Scalable Homeland Innovative Enterprise Layered Defense (SHIELD) Multiple Award Agreement (MAA) contract vehicle.

Forward Edge-AI is the company behind Isidore Quantum^®, the FIPS 140-3–certified hardware platform delivering the world’s first drop-in post-quantum cybersecurity solution successfully tested across air, land, sea, and space by the U.S. Army, Air Force, Navy, Space Force, and major commercial partners such as Microsoft and Lumen. The news comes one day after the company announced customers in Taiwan and a fifth patent.

The SHIELD program represents one of the Department of War’s (DoW) most ambitious modernization efforts, focused on building a next-generation, multi-domain, layered defensive architecture that can detect, track, and defeat advanced missile, hypersonic, cruise-missile, UAV, cyber, and hybrid threats across all phases of flight. The SHIELD MAA serves as a cornerstone of the emerging Golden Dome initiative, an envisioned nationwide defensive network that integrates government, commercial, and dual-use technologies to rapidly deliver new capabilities to the warfighter.

Under the SHIELD contract, Forward Edge-AI will compete for task orders in multiple advanced technology areas aligned with MDA’s Section C Work Areas, including:

Science & Technology (2.1): Advancing foundational innovations in AI, sensing, automation, and human–machine teaming to accelerate next-generation defensive concepts.

Research & Development (2.2): Developing applied R&D prototypes and breakthrough AI systems supporting multi-domain missile-defense missions.

Prototyping (2.3): Rapidly building, integrating, and iterating prototype systems that transition emerging concepts to field-ready capabilities.

Disruptive Technologies (2.5): Introducing game-changing capabilities such as autonomous AI agents, resilient sensing, and cognitive-EW techniques that counter evolving threat vectors.

Data Mining, Collection & Analysis (2.17): Applying AI-driven analytics to fuse disparate data streams, enhance threat characterization, and increase decision advantage.

Cybersecurity (2.19): Delivering secure-by-design architectures, zero-trust implementations, and threat-hunting capabilities essential to SHIELD’s multi-domain environment.

Isidore Quantum has been tested and validated in 30 pilots across the U.S. Army, Air Force, Navy, Space Force, and the private sector, achieving <0.5 millisecond latency and up to 800 Gbps throughput. The device consumes less than 9 watts of power, operates silently without fans, and is exportable under license exception.

The SHIELD IDIQ carries a $151B ceiling and a 10-year ordering period, enabling MDA and other DoW components to rapidly acquire innovative technologies that strengthen the nation’s layered defensive posture.

Forward Edge-AI’s selection reinforces the company’s position as a trusted provider of advanced AI, cyber defense, and rapid innovation solutions in direct support of national security.

Forward Edge-AI, Inc today announced two major milestones in advancing quantum-resistant communications: the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued a Notice of Allowance for its patent application covering attack-resilient, trust-verified communications, and the company has successfully delivered its Isidore Quantum® One-Way Data Diode to National Central University (NCU) in Taiwan.

Breakthrough Deployment to National Central University

The delivery of Isidore Quantum® to National Central University marks a significant milestone in cross-national research collaboration on next-generation cyber defense technologies. The deployment advances quantum-resistant data security research and demonstrates the operational readiness of Forward Edge-AI’s technology in critical infrastructure environments. Traditional one-way diodes, which rely on fiber optic hardware isolation, cannot support encryption, encryption typically requires two-way exchanges for key negotiation. Isidore Quantum achieves a breakthrough: it enables true one-way data flow while simultaneously supporting NIST-approved post-quantum encryption using AES-256 GCM and ML-KEM.

This capability is unique and addresses a critical vulnerability: traditional one-way diodes prevent unauthorized network access but do not protect data in flight from Harvest Now, Decrypt Later (HNDL) attacks. Without encryption, data flowing through conventional diodes remains vulnerable to interception and future decryption. Isidore Quantum solves this by combining unidirectional enforcement with quantum-resistant encryption, ensuring captured data remains protected even against future quantum computers.

Additionally, unlike traditional diode systems that require expensive fiber optic infrastructure, Isidore Quantum operates seamlessly on both fiber and copper networks. This means organizations can deploy quantum-safe, one-way data protection without costly infrastructure replacement, dramatically reducing deployment time and capital expense.

The patent, U.S. Patent No. 12,452,301 B2, titled “Methods, Systems, Apparatuses, and Methods for Facilitating Attack-Resilient Communications Between Devices,” secures Forward Edge-AI’s leadership in developing hardware-based cryptographic resilience for critical communications, a foundational advance for post-quantum security. The patented system introduces a trusted network switch architecture that maintains secure communications between devices, even under attack or when exposed to compromised networks. Unlike traditional encryption, which relies solely on software protocols, Forward Edge-AI’s solution embeds cryptographic verification and isolation directly into the network hardware layer. This ensures message integrity, authenticity, and confidentiality, even in environments where adversaries have advanced computational capabilities.

The innovation enables:

• Tamper-resistant encryption relays between trusted elements
• Dynamic re-encryption and authentication of data packets in transit
• Hardware-enforced trust boundaries that isolate compromised components
• Cryptographic switching as low as sub-millisecond when under attack—a critical breakthrough for operational continuity

Traditional security requirements mandate cryptographic failover within 30 seconds or less during attack scenarios. Forward Edge-AI’s patented architecture achieves switching as low as sub-millisecond under attack conditions, exceeding government specifications by orders of magnitude. While switching times can vary based on network conditions, ranging from sub-millisecond to as high as six seconds, the system consistently performs well below the 30-second threshold that no competing solution has yet met.

This innovation was made possible through U.S. Government support under Agreement Number FA8075-23-C-0003, awarded by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). The government retains certain rights in this invention, underscoring its national security relevance.

Preparing for Q-Day and the HNDL Threat

As global cybersecurity leaders warn of Q-Day, the moment quantum computers can break today’s encryption, Forward Edge-AI’s technology addresses the urgent need to defend against Harvest Now, Decrypt Later (HNDL) attacks. Isidore Quantum encrypts data unidirectionally using AES-256 ML-KEM and ML-DSA post-quantum algorithms, ensuring that data captured today remains protected well into the future of quantum computing, a capability traditional one-way diodes cannot provide. “Q-Day isn’t a distant risk; it’s a certainty,” said Eric Adolphe. “Our patented Switch Isidore architecture provides the trust fabric needed to secure command, control, and communications across defense, finance, and critical infrastructure sectors in the quantum era.”

Isidore Quantum has been tested and validated in 23 pilots across the U.S. Army, Air Force, Navy, Space Force, and Microsoft, achieving <0.5 millisecond latency and up to 2 Gbps throughput. The device consumes less than 8 watts of power, operates silently without fans, and is exportable under license exception ENC (ECCN 5A002). “Every competitor still has something in the lab. We have something in the field,” said Ross Coffman, President of Forward Edge-AI and retired U.S. Army Lieutenant General. “Given the federal mandate to begin the post-quantum transition by December 2025, only proven solutions like ours can meet the deadline.”

The White House’s Executive Order 14144 requires all federal agencies to begin the post-quantum transition by December 2025 and complete it by 2030. Isidore Quantum allows organizations to comply instantly, without disruption, re-certification, or re-architecture.