Conference Programme

Michael is Investment Advisor at Heartcore Capital, backing very early-stage, sector-defining quantum companies. IHeleverages his technical expertise and strategic market understanding to establish relationships with committed founders building the future of quantum computing, sensing, and communications.   CEO of MBQ, providing independent strategic advisory services to international organizations and technology sector clients on global projects.   Previously VP of Business Intelligence at Global Quantum Intelligence, where he advised on quantum strategy and investments worldwide.

Rakesh Kandula is a Technical Marketing Engineer in Cisco’s Mass Scale Infrastructure Group (MIG), where he handles security for products primarily deployed in service provider networks.   Rakesh received his Master’s Degree from Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (IIT Delhi). He has been with Cisco for 15+ years in various roles. His current focus areas are Trustworthy Systems, Platform Security Chips, Secure Boot, DDoS Solutions and other security features relevant to routing platforms.  Outside his work, Rakesh is an avid runner who loves running marathons and trail ultras.

With a career immersed in the evolution of emerging technologies, Martin Charbonneau pioneers Quantum-Safe networking solutions at Nokia. His focus on Quantum-era cybersecurity fosters global collaborations with research and technology leaders in the quantum cryptography sphere, aiming to craft solutions for a dynamic security landscape.   Martin partners with critical infrastructure organizations and enterprises, enlightening them about the urgency of securing network infrastructure through comprehensive defense-in-depth strategies. While Martin recognizes the vast potential of quantum computing technologies, his mission is to ensure a continued trust in our data and digital communication infrastructures. This commitment is rooted in a clear understanding of the transformative power of Quantum technologies and the necessity to protect our digital future.   A product of Canadian education, Martin attended the Canadian Royal Military College (RMC, St-Jean, Canada). He is currently based in Canada’s capital city, Ottawa.

Michael is Investment Advisor at Heartcore Capital, backing very early-stage, sector-defining quantum companies. IHeleverages his technical expertise and strategic market understanding to establish relationships with committed founders building the future of quantum computing, sensing, and communications.   CEO of MBQ, providing independent strategic advisory services to international organizations and technology sector clients on global projects.   Previously VP of Business Intelligence at Global Quantum Intelligence, where he advised on quantum strategy and investments worldwide.

Teun is senior consultant and Quantum Communications lead in the business unit ICT, Strategy and Policy at TNO, an independent Research and Technology Organisation.   He co-leads the Quantum Internet enabled by Space roadmap, launched by TNO in 2024. Teun liaises with the Quantum Delta NL programme, managed the Dutch EuroQCI project (QCINed) and produced influential white papers on Quantum technology supply chains.  Before exploring the fascinating world of quantum networks, he headed various R&D programmes on classical networks in the Dutch and European media & telecom markets, and represented TNO in ETSI, ITU-T and the Broadband Forum.   He enjoys connecting experts to create new technological possibilities. Teun holds an MSc in Applied Physics from the University of Twente and began his career as a photonics chip designer.

Anna is a CEO and co-founder at Quantum Security Defence, QSECDEF that is a global networking, educational and business platform to serve community of professionals. She is an active participant in the Quantum Start Up Sector in Germany with her project QuantumPrime which focuses on Quantum Satellite Communications that is data entanglement and quantum data teleportation for future 6G connectivity.   Anna Beata Kalisz Hedegaard is a physicist with two Master of Science degrees. At Wright State University, Ohio, she got deeply interested in electronics and nanotechnology, and the University of Southern Denmark fortified her expertise in quantum mechanics, and particle physics.   Anna serves on the Krown Network Quantum Security Advisory Board that builds quantum secure blockchain.   Anna has global perspective from her extensive international experience (Poland, Denmark, the United States, Malaysia, the Netherlands, and Germany) and intellectual property experience from the European Patent Office and from working as a patent engineer. Anna speaks German, Danish, Polish and English.

Farzam Toudeh-Fallah is R&D Director of Quantum Communications at Ciena. His knowledge and experience in the areas of quantum and coherent optical communications expands over 20 years, going back to his academic and research studies at MIT.  His fields of interest include quantum communications, quantum-secured channels and quantum networks.   He is the author/co-author of several patents and publications including the Roadmap for Quantum Interconnects, published by the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Quantum Information Science Research Center.

Teun is senior consultant and Quantum Communications lead in the business unit ICT, Strategy and Policy at TNO, an independent Research and Technology Organisation.   He co-leads the Quantum Internet enabled by Space roadmap, launched by TNO in 2024. Teun liaises with the Quantum Delta NL programme, managed the Dutch EuroQCI project (QCINed) and produced influential white papers on Quantum technology supply chains.  Before exploring the fascinating world of quantum networks, he headed various R&D programmes on classical networks in the Dutch and European media & telecom markets, and represented TNO in ETSI, ITU-T and the Broadband Forum.   He enjoys connecting experts to create new technological possibilities. Teun holds an MSc in Applied Physics from the University of Twente and began his career as a photonics chip designer.

Huseyin Dede has been serving as the IP Network Planning Master Expert at Turkcell since July 2023. In this strategic role, he manages the capacity planning of the IP Core Network and Security Gateway infrastructure to meet increasing traffic demands. He is responsible for preparing the Annual Operational Plan (AOP) and budget for the IP Core Network domain, ensuring alignment with the company’s broader technological and financial goals.   With over 7 years of experience in IP/MPLS networking, Huseyin has established himself as an expert in leveraging advanced networking technologies for innovative global projects. He has been at the forefront of several "world-first" and nationwide milestones. Notably, he successfully leveraged Ka-band satellite links to transport mobile services, launching Turkey's first satellite-based mobile services in November 2024.   Furthermore, he conducted the world's first demonstration of quantum-safe IPsec network cryptography for mobile subscribers and provided end-to-end connectivity for the VERGE 5G Private SA project, contributing to European industrial leadership in 5G/6G.   Before joining Turkcell, Huseyin built a robust technical and architectural foundation at Nokia, where he worked as an IP Domain Architect and Senior Technical Support Engineer. During his tenure, he led critical network migrations and design projects for international ISPs and railway companies.   Huseyin holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Electronics and Communication Engineering from Kocaeli University. Combining his deep technical expertise with strategic management skills, he is currently pursuing a Master of Science in Engineering Management at Istanbul Technical University.

Sebastian Ecker is a senior engineer at qtlabs, where he drives the deployment of cutting-edge quantum-safe communication infrastructures. His expertise spans both satellite links and terrestrial optical fiber networks. Sebastian guides the seamless integration of quantum-safe solutions into existing communication systems. He leads a lighthouse initiative to implement QKD systems in Austria’s critical infrastructure and actively contributes to several other high-impact projects driving the future of quantum-secure technologies in space and on ground.   Sebastian holds a master’s degree in Technical Physics from TU Vienna, supervised by Anton Zeilinger, and a PhD from the Institute of Quantum Optics and Quantum Information (IQOQI) in Vienna, supervised by Marcus Huber, where he focused on noise-resilient high-dimensional entanglement distribution. During his PhD, he served as a visiting scientist for the European Space Agency (ESA), identifying future quantum technologies for satellite-based QKD.

Dr. Theodore(Tod) Sizer leads the Optical System and Device Research Lab in Nokia Bell Labs, leading teams innovating in all aspects of optical systems and devices for access, core, submarine, satellite, and data center communications.   Prior to his current role, Tod led Wireless Research in Nokia Bell Labs for 8 years driving the vision and research of 5G.   Tod graduated from Amherst College and received his Masters and Doctorate in Optics from the Institute of Optics at the University of Rochester.   In 2012 he received the Popular Science Breakthrough Innovation award for the lightRadio invention.   Tod is a Fellow of Bell Labs, WWRF, and IEEE. He is the author of 55 US patents and a member of the IEEE, SPIE and Optica.

Bruce Chesley has more than three decades of aerospace experience across industry, government, and academia. He is Chief Scientist Officer for Quantum Corridor, advancing commercial infrastructure for quantum networking, computing, and sensing.   He also serves as Executive Faculty with Teaching Science and Technology, Inc., supporting global programs in systems engineering and mission design.   During a 20-year career at Boeing, he held executive leadership roles including Chief Strategist for Space &s Launch and Vice President for global broadband programs.   Earlier, he served as a U.S. Air Force officer supporting national security space missions.   He is a member of the International Academy of Astronautics and a former Vice President of the International Astronautical Federation.

Owen O’Donnell is a Dublin native and currently leads marketing, strategy, and new product introductions for VIAVI’s Wireless Business Unit, with a focus on 5G, Open RAN, AI-driven RAN, s and network security testing.  Owen is a key contributor to VIAVI’s advancements in PQC (Post-Quantum Cryptography) performance testing, authoring whitepapers and speaking at industry conferences.   With over 35 years in the mobile industry, Owen has held senior roles at Ericsson and Huawei and has lived and worked in Sweden and the UK before returning to Ireland. His expertise spans wireless innovation, network resilience, and emerging technologies shaping next-generation connectivity.

Mohamed Bassiouny leads technical and R&D efforts at QuRISK, focusing on quantum-era cybersecurity and risk management.   He leverages his experience in IT risk and critical-infrastructure security to support organizations in deploying quantum-safe cryptographic technologies. His work contributes to developing robust methodologies for the audit, security evaluation, and certification of next-generation solutions.   Mohamed contributes to major quantum initiatives in France and Europe, such as EuroQIC, and is actively involved in standardization working groups.  Additionally, he is engaged in quantum education, mentoring students in specialized programs through hands-on projects and professional training to prepare the next generation of quantum-security specialists.  Mohamed holds degrees in Quantum Technologies and Computer Science from ENS Paris-Saclay.

Francois is heading Numana activities within the CP/ISO/IEC JTC 3 committee of the Standards Council of Canada with a particular objective to create its awareness within the Quebec Province Quantum ecosystem.

Diane Ouandji is senior manager in the technology risk and consulting team at KPMG Canada. She has nearly 20 years of professional experience in supporting organizations with regard to privacy compliance, cybersecurity and information security.   An engineer by training, she has developed security-related applications and worked on the design and deployment of PKI, electronic safebox, encryption and electronic signature solutions. She has led projects to formalize decision criteria (classification of data and processing) and formalize the catalog of data and processing with their classification and definition of priorities.   She has supported her clients in managing information security and data protection projects in various industries through her work as a consultant, interim CISO or DPO.

Vladyslav Usenko is a senior researcher at the Department of Optics of Palacky University Olomouc in Czech Republic, where he joined after receiving his PhD degree from Bogolyubov Institute for Theoretical Physics and being a Landau Network-Centro Volta post-doctoral fellow at the University of Milan.   His research interests include quantum optics and quantum information theory with particular focus on practical aspects of quantum communication and networking.

Teun is senior consultant and Quantum Communications lead in the business unit ICT, Strategy and Policy at TNO, an independent Research and Technology Organisation.   He co-leads the Quantum Internet enabled by Space roadmap, launched by TNO in 2024. Teun liaises with the Quantum Delta NL programme, managed the Dutch EuroQCI project (QCINed) and produced influential white papers on Quantum technology supply chains.  Before exploring the fascinating world of quantum networks, he headed various R&D programmes on classical networks in the Dutch and European media & telecom markets, and represented TNO in ETSI, ITU-T and the Broadband Forum.   He enjoys connecting experts to create new technological possibilities. Teun holds an MSc in Applied Physics from the University of Twente and began his career as a photonics chip designer.

Anna is a CEO and co-founder at Quantum Security Defence, QSECDEF that is a global networking, educational and business platform to serve community of professionals. She is an active participant in the Quantum Start Up Sector in Germany with her project QuantumPrime which focuses on Quantum Satellite Communications that is data entanglement and quantum data teleportation for future 6G connectivity.   Anna Beata Kalisz Hedegaard is a physicist with two Master of Science degrees. At Wright State University, Ohio, she got deeply interested in electronics and nanotechnology, and the University of Southern Denmark fortified her expertise in quantum mechanics, and particle physics.   Anna serves on the Krown Network Quantum Security Advisory Board that builds quantum secure blockchain.   Anna has global perspective from her extensive international experience (Poland, Denmark, the United States, Malaysia, the Netherlands, and Germany) and intellectual property experience from the European Patent Office and from working as a patent engineer. Anna speaks German, Danish, Polish and English.

Andrew Csizmar is the Senior Business lead responsible for the Space Global Strategy including Optical & Quantum Communication, RWAs, RF solutions and inertial avionics.  His past experience include 23 years in the space industry include role as Director of Program Management, Director of Business Development, running flagship missions for Astronomy mission including JWST Fine Guidance Sensor, first Space Surveillance Detection System, multiple Spacecraft Missions and advanced communication for both RF to Optical.   Andrew joined Honeywell (ComDev) in 2002, and holds a Bachelor's in Aerospace Engineering from Carleton University.

Prasanna Sundaram heads the Optical and Fibre network engineering function at Colt Technology Services.   In his role at Colt, Prasanna is responsible for Colt’s global Fibre and Optical network and technology strategy, engineering and planning portfolio. He joined Colt in 2006.   Prior to joining Colt, Prasanna was at Reliance communications. Prasanna holds a Bachelors degree in Electronics engineering from University of Pune. He has over 24 years of experience in telecommunication industry, and held various roles in engineering, pre-sales, network and infrastructure planning. He believes in people, partnerships and in nurturing a culture of sustainable innovation. He is based in London, UK.

With a career immersed in the evolution of emerging technologies, Martin Charbonneau pioneers Quantum-Safe networking solutions at Nokia. His focus on Quantum-era cybersecurity fosters global collaborations with research and technology leaders in the quantum cryptography sphere, aiming to craft solutions for a dynamic security landscape.   Martin partners with critical infrastructure organizations and enterprises, enlightening them about the urgency of securing network infrastructure through comprehensive defense-in-depth strategies. While Martin recognizes the vast potential of quantum computing technologies, his mission is to ensure a continued trust in our data and digital communication infrastructures. This commitment is rooted in a clear understanding of the transformative power of Quantum technologies and the necessity to protect our digital future.   A product of Canadian education, Martin attended the Canadian Royal Military College (RMC, St-Jean, Canada). He is currently based in Canada’s capital city, Ottawa.

Li Zhi is the chief solution Architect of Huawei Router domain, with 15 years of experience in router product and architecture design.

Dr Diego Lopez joined Telefonica in 2011 as a Senior Technology Expert, and he is currently in charge of the Technology Exploration activities within the GCTIO Unit. Before joining Telefónica, xDiego spent some years in the academic sector, dedicated to research on digital identity, computational intelligence and network services, and took the opportunity to earn his PhD addressing linguistic models back in 2000. He was appointed member of the High-Level Expert Group on Scientific Data Infrastructures by the European Commission.   Diego is currently focused on applied research in network infrastructures, with a special emphasis on quantum communications and data infrastructures. Diego is an ETSI Fellow and chairs the ETSI Technical Committee on Data Solutions.   Apart from this, Diego is a more than acceptable Iberian ham carver, and extremely fond of seeking and enjoying comics, and good discussions on any (in)appropriate matter.

Rakesh Kandula is a Technical Marketing Engineer in Cisco’s Mass Scale Infrastructure Group (MIG), where he handles security for products primarily deployed in service provider networks.   Rakesh received his Master’s Degree from Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (IIT Delhi). He has been with Cisco for 15+ years in various roles. His current focus areas are Trustworthy Systems, Platform Security Chips, Secure Boot, DDoS Solutions and other security features relevant to routing platforms.  Outside his work, Rakesh is an avid runner who loves running marathons and trail ultras.

Farzam Toudeh-Fallah is R&D Director of Quantum Communications at Ciena. His knowledge and experience in the areas of quantum and coherent optical communications expands over 20 years, going back to his academic and research studies at MIT.  His fields of interest include quantum communications, quantum-secured channels and quantum networks.   He is the author/co-author of several patents and publications including the Roadmap for Quantum Interconnects, published by the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Quantum Information Science Research Center.

Hooman has 22 years of experience in IP/MPLS protocols and network solutions. He started with Newbridge Networks in LAN emulation solutions (VIVID products) and moved to 7670 MPLS solutions. He was one of the first software designers on 7705 SAR and was responsible for IP/MPLS and L2/L3 services on SAR.   As PLM, he is responsibility ranges from Anyhaul including Fronthaul and 5G solutions to Multicast solutions and Security on SR-OS products.

Nir is the CEO of HEQA Security, a leader in quantum communications and QKD.   Prior to HEQA, Nir co-founded and led ClearML as its CEO, taking it to become the leading global open source MLOps platform provider.   Nir spent a decade at Google in various executive product and GM roles. He made significant contributions to revamping product strategies and enhancing operational efficiencies, notably in the realms of Search Ads and payments. His endeavors were critical in reshaping Google's product offerings in the EMEA region and in spearheading the development of various innovative tools and platforms.   Nir's journey in the tech industry began as a software engineer and an alum of one of the IDF’s elite technology units. Alongside his corporate journey, Nir has been recognized with several awards and authored several patents. He holds an MBA from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, and a Bachelor of Science in Computer Sciences from the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology.