The National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT, President: OHNO Hideo, Ph.D.), together with 5 international research partners, has demonstrated a record-breaking 450 terabits per second (Tb/s) optical transmission - the first time such a rate has been achieved over a field-deployed legacy fiber. The link, in London, UK, connects University College London (UCL) to the Telehouse North data center. This work is part of a long-standing collaboration between NICT and UCL.

Dr. Ruben Soares Luís (Executive Researcher of Photonic Network Laboratory, Photonic ICT Research Center, Network Research Institute) was elevated to be a Fellow of the Optica in class of 2026, which is the highest grade of membership.

On May 4, 2026, NICT signed an MoU with the University of Luxembourg and a collaborative research agreement with Odysseus Space to advance research in space communications and non-terrestrial networks (NTN), as well as to demonstrate optical satellite-to-ground communications through international collaboration.

Secondary root certificate maintains security of communications between servers and clients to facilitate a phased transition from current to quantum-safe cryptography

Tokyo - April 9, 2026 - TOPPAN Holdings Inc. (TYO: 7911) (TOPPAN Holdings), the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT), and ISARA Corporation (ISARA) have successfully conducted a proof of concept confirming the effectiveness of technology for seamless migration from current cryptography to Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) for certificate authority frameworks that from the base of the security infrastructure of internet communications.

The National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT) has concluded a Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) with the Australian Space Agency (ASA). The purpose of this MoC is to strengthen Japan–Australia collaboration in the field of space ICT, especially space optical communications.

This initiative aims for the social implementation of trustworthy AI by balancing high levels of safety with superior Japanese language performance

SB Intuitions Corp. (“SB Intuitions”) and the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (“NICT”) announced today the launch of joint research on safety technology for high-performance large language models (LLMs), which began on February 18, 2026.

- Successful Simultaneous Communications Using a Quantum Computer -

The National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT, President: TOKUDA Hideyuki, Ph.D.) developed a hybrid signal processing method that integrates an annealing-based quantum computer with classical computing for next-generation mobile communication systems. By implementing this method into a base station, simultaneous communications with 10 devices were successfully demonstrated through outdoor experiments, addressing the massive connectivity requirements anticipated for the 6G era. The proposed approach utilizes quantum annealing to efficiently solve the combinatorial optimization problem arising in signal detection under multi-antenna and multi-carrier transmission. This result represents a significant step toward realizing large-scale machine-to-machine communications in future 6G networks, including applications involving drones, robots, and XR devices.

The National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT, President: TOKUDA Hideyuki, Ph.D.) has successfully demonstrated 2 Tbit/s Free-Space Optical (FSO) communication using small optical communication terminals that can be mounted on satellites and HAPS, marking a world first for this technology.

— Discovery of Suppressed Plasma Supply from the Ionosphere to Outer Space —

A research team led by the Institute for Space–Earth Environmental Research (ISEE) at Nagoya University, in collaboration with the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT) and other partner institutions, has successfully observed large-scale variations in the electron density of the plasmasphere and ionosphere during the super geomagnetic storm that occurred on May 10, 2024.

- Achieved with technique that multiplies the usable capacity of certain spectral regions by up to three times -

The National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT, President: TOKUDA Hideyuki, Ph.D.), together with 11 international research partners, has demonstrated a record-breaking 430 terabits per second (Tb/s) optical transmission using a novel approach that extends the capacity of standard-compliant cutoff-shifted optical fibers well beyond the original design.