Google says it will be able to break RSA encryption by 2029. Third-party actors are already collecting encrypted data on the assumption they'll be able to read it later. The UK has just committed £2 billion to a quantum strategy.

🎙️This week we sit down with Rebecca Keating and Laura Wright — barristers at 4 Pump Court and the co-authors of A Practical Guide to Quantum Computing and the Law.

Both are a rare breed of Barrister with technical credentials to complement their deep legal expertise. Rebecca worked in-house at Dropbox before being called to the Bar in 2017, sits on the ICO's Technology Advisory Panel, and has acted in one of the only quantum-related cases to pass through the UK courts. Laura took an MSc in Computing Science at Imperial mid-career — her final project was a new coding language for legal contracts — and now writes and speaks regularly on smart contracts, AI liability, and quantum risk.

—

What You'll Learn

• What is Quantum Computing — Alex surprises us all with his own definition and a sneak preview into how he likes to prepare for our podcast conversations! 👀
• The Quantum Paradox — Rebecca's framing for the central tension of the technology – the ability of quantum computers to upend the security systems that are the basis upon which we keep information safe, but there's also the capability to have even more secure systems than we have ever had.
• Harvest Now, Decrypt Later — This is not a future threat. Third-party actors are already collecting RSA-encrypted data they can't read today on the assumption they'll be able to decrypt it within a few years. NIST's quantum-readiness window of 2030–2035 is, in Rebecca's view, too late to start the conversation — particularly for anyone holding sensitive medical, political, or nationally significant data.
• Contracting for Quantum Computing as a Service — Customers won't own quantum computers — they'll access them remotely on a pay-as-you-go basis. Laura walks through what features are likely to make ”QCaaS” contracts genuinely different from SaaS.

—

Connect with Rebecca Keating — Barrister at 4 Pump Court | Member, ICO Technology Advisory Panel

Connect with Laura Wright— Barrister at 4 Pump Court | Co-host, 4 Pump Court podcast

Their book — A Practical Guide to Quantum Computing and the Law (Law Brief Publishing, December 2024).

The Law of AI (2nd edition, Sweet & Maxwell)— Rebecca and Laura author the chapter on AI and Professional Liability.

Society for Computers and Law (SCL) — Rebecca and Laura's recent SCL webinar on quantum legal issues was the catalyst for this episode.  Both (+ Tom) are members of the SCL – a leading educational charity for the tech law community in the UK.

—

If you enjoyed this conversation, please share it with someone or a community who you think would find it valuable . And if you have a moment, rate the show and tell us what landed — it helps us reach more people and keep getting brilliant guests like Rebecca and Laura.

—

For more conversations at the intersection of law and technology, head to⁠⁠⁠ https://lawwhatsnext.substack.com/⁠⁠⁠.