Boeing announces Q4S, a self-funded satellite to test quantum entanglement swapping in orbit, with HRL building the payload

Boeing/Q4S quantum networking satellite

Boeing said it would launch Q4S, a satellite carrying two entangled-photon sources, to show entanglement swapping working in space during a year-long mission. Swapping lets quantum networks reach beyond simple point-to-point links. Boeing pays for the mission itself and HRL Laboratories prepared the space-hardened payload; launch was then set for 2026.

• Launch target at announcement: 2026; mission about one year.
• Two entangled-photon pair sources on board.
• Fully funded by Boeing; HRL Laboratories built the payload.
• Boeing frames it as groundwork for a global quantum internet.