CISO Tribune

Vendor comparison · 2 companies

PQShield vs Thales

PQShield is a cybersecurity company specialising in post-quantum cryptography. Thales sells cybersecurity solutions that protect applications, data and identities. CISO Tribune files both under Post-quantum cryptography and Encryption, tokenization and key management. This page sets the two records side by side: what each sells, where it is based, who owns and funds it, the customers it names and its recent news, each fact numbered to its source.

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  • PQShield
  • Thales
PQShield vs Thales: Products, Customers and Funding Compared
PQShieldPQShield is a cybersecurity company specialising in post-quantum cryptography.pqshield.comThalesThales sells cybersecurity solutions that protect applications, data and identities.cpl.thalesgroup.com
What it sells
  • PQMicroLib-Core[1][10]A library designed with flexibility and configurability in mind.
  • PQCryptoLib-Core[1][10]A general-purpose cryptographic library for a wide variety of applications.
  • PQCryptoLib-SDK[1][10]A plug-and-play tool for moving OpenSSL-based applications to quantum resilience.
  • PQPlatform-CoPro[1][10]A cryptographic coprocessor that adds post-quantum capabilities to an existing security subsystem.
  • PQPlatform-TrustSys[1][5][10]A PQC-focused Root-of-Trust security solution.
  • PQPerform-Flare[10]A hardware-based PQC product designed for high throughput and low latency.
  • PQPerform-Inferno[1][10]A scalable hardware solution built on the PQPerform-Flare architecture.
  • PQPerform-Flex[10]PQPerform-Inferno combined with a RISC-V processor as a complete subsystem.
  • CipherTrust Data Security Platform[2][5]A platform to discover, protect and control sensitive data anywhere.
  • CipherTrust DSPM[5]A data security offering Thales describes as new.
  • Thales AI Security Fabric[5]An offering to keep AI apps, agents, data and models secure.
  • Imperva Application Security Platform[5]A platform to protect applications, APIs and websites.
  • OneWelcome Identity Platform[5]An identity platform for digital experiences.
  • SafeNet Trusted Access[9]An offering to secure VDI access from any endpoint.
  • Sentinel Software Monetization Platform[5]A platform to monetize and protect software.
Categories
Headquarters
United Kingdom[2][3]Paris, France[4]
Founded
Not stated on its pagesNot stated on its pages
Ownership and funding
Privately held[9]Public (Euronext Paris: HO)[3][12]
Named customers
Not stated on its pagesNot stated on its pages
Recent news
Not stated on its pages
  • November 2, 2026Thales appointed David Zolet as CEO of Thales Defense & Security, Inc., effective November 2, 2026, succeeding Michael Sheehan, who is retiring.[11]
G2 and Gartner Peer Insights
  • G2: Not stated on its pages
  • Gartner Peer Insights: Not stated on its pages
  • G2: listed, seen November 3, 2026[12]
  • Gartner Peer Insights: Not stated on its pages
Who it fits
Not written yetFrom its own pages, Thales sells mainly to organizations across finance, healthcare, retail, manufacturing and critical infrastructure. Thales says its data security solutions work across hybrid IT. Thales says its solutions can help organizations in the Defense Industrial Base with CMMC requirements. Thales positions its identity platform for customers, employees and partners.
Last verified
November 2, 2026September 27, 2026

Where they overlap

  • PQShield and Thales are both filed under Post-quantum cryptography and Encryption, tokenization and key management.

Where they differ, field by field

  • PQShield's primary category is Post-quantum cryptography; Thales's is Encryption, tokenization and key management.
  • PQShield lists PQMicroLib-Core, PQCryptoLib-Core, PQCryptoLib-SDK, PQPlatform-CoPro, PQPlatform-TrustSys and 3 more. Thales lists CipherTrust Data Security Platform, CipherTrust DSPM, Thales AI Security Fabric, Imperva Application Security Platform, OneWelcome Identity Platform and 2 more.
  • PQShield is headquartered in United Kingdom. Thales is headquartered in Paris, France.
  • PQShield is privately held. Thales is a public company listed on Euronext Paris as HO.

What it sells: PQShield

What PQMicroLib-Core does[1][10]
PQMicroLib-Core is a library designed with flexibility and configurability in mind. A CAVP-Ready version of PQCryptoLib-Core is tailored for embedded systems, small footprint solutions and memory constrained devices.
What PQCryptoLib-Core does[1][10]
PQCryptoLib-Core is a FIPS 140-3 CMVP Certified / CAVP Compliant general-purpose cryptographic library designed for a wide variety of applications. PQCryptoLib-Core is configurable by a secure API.
What PQCryptoLib-SDK does[1][10]
PQCryptoLib-SDK is a plug-and-play tool that helps to transition OpenSSL-based applications to quantum resilience. Software implementations of PQC algorithms are supplied via an OpenSSL provider, including ML-DSA, Falcon, ML-KEM and hybrid PQ/T schemes for TLS.
What PQPerform-Flare does[10]
PQPerform-Flare is a hardware-based FIPS 140-3 CAVP-certified product designed for high throughput and low latency PQC. PQPerform-Flare supports ML-DSA (FIPS 204) and ML-KEM (FIPS 203) and is optimized for TLS.
What PQPerform-Inferno does[1][10]
PQPerform-Inferno is a scalable hardware solution. Building on the architecture of PQPerform-Flare, Inferno integrates multiple instances with load balancing, and can deliver over 1 million key encapsulations per second.

What it sells: Thales

What CipherTrust Data Security Platform does[2][5]
Thales says the platform gives real-time visibility of threats, risks and compliance gaps. It provides centralized key management with data discovery and classification, data protection and granular access control across multiple on-premises and cloud infrastructure providers.

Questions about PQShield and Thales

What do PQShield and Thales sell?
PQShield sells PQMicroLib-Core, PQCryptoLib-Core, PQCryptoLib-SDK, PQPlatform-CoPro, PQPlatform-TrustSys and 3 more. Thales sells CipherTrust Data Security Platform, CipherTrust DSPM, Thales AI Security Fabric, Imperva Application Security Platform, OneWelcome Identity Platform and 2 more.
Are PQShield and Thales in the same category?
They share Post-quantum cryptography and Encryption, tokenization and key management. PQShield's primary category is Post-quantum cryptography and Thales's is Encryption, tokenization and key management.
Where are PQShield and Thales headquartered?
PQShield is headquartered in United Kingdom. Thales is headquartered in Paris, France.
Who owns PQShield and Thales?
PQShield is privately held. Thales is a public company listed on Euronext Paris as HO.
Who are PQShield and Thales sold to?
From its own pages, Thales sells mainly to organizations across finance, healthcare, retail, manufacturing and critical infrastructure.
What have PQShield and Thales announced recently?
November 2, 2026: Thales appointed David Zolet as CEO of Thales Defense & Security, Inc., effective November 2, 2026, succeeding Michael Sheehan, who is retiring.

About PQShield

PQShield is a cybersecurity company specialising in post-quantum cryptography. PQShield develops and commercially deploys quantum-ready cryptographic solutions for hardware, software and communications. PQShield is headquartered in Oxford, with additional teams in the Netherlands and France.

PQShield states that quantum computers will soon be able to break current cryptography methods. PQShield aims its quantum-resistant hardware and software solutions at organizations, industries and nations. PQShield says the cryptography that keeps data, devices, connections and components secure must be modernized to align with the new NIST global standards. Public key cryptography, including RSA and elliptic curve cryptography (ECC), faces the greatest quantum risk. Post-quantum cryptography can be deployed on existing classical hardware today. Adversaries can harvest encrypted information now and decrypt it later when quantum capabilities mature.[4]

The PQShield team comprises post-quantum cryptographers, researchers and engineers. PQShield says its team has been actively involved in the international standardization of post-quantum algorithms. Customers are helped to evaluate existing infrastructure, determining the risk and agility of the underlying architecture. The PQShield team works alongside, or as part of, a customer's wider team to deploy end-to-end solutions. PQShield products are aimed at vendors building PQC into greenfield and brownfield products. Device manufacturers have chosen PQShield’s PQC IP for integration into hardware security solutions.[4][10]

PQShield has a reciprocal agreement with Kudelski Security, the cybersecurity division within the Kudelski Group. Under that agreement, PQShield will offer expert training and advisory services to clients of Kudelski, alongside post-quantum cryptography solutions for both software and hardware. The agreement includes a collaborative referral and co-marketing relationship to support Kudelski Security’s go-to-market strategy. PQShield has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with systems integrator Tata Consultancy Services to help its clients transition to post-quantum cryptography (PQC) solutions. PQShield has partnered with eShard, a provider of side-channel analysis and testing tools.[11]

PQShield offers post-quantum cryptography for embedded devices in as little as 5KB RAM. PQMicroLib-Core is a library designed with flexibility and configurability in mind. A CAVP-Ready version of PQCryptoLib-Core is tailored for embedded systems, small footprint solutions and memory constrained devices. PQCryptoLib-Core is a FIPS 140-3 CMVP Certified / CAVP Compliant general-purpose cryptographic library designed for a wide variety of applications. PQCryptoLib-Core is configurable by a secure API. PQCryptoLib-SDK is a plug-and-play tool that helps to transition OpenSSL-based applications to quantum resilience. Software implementations of PQC algorithms are supplied via an OpenSSL provider, including ML-DSA, Falcon, ML-KEM and hybrid PQ/T schemes for TLS.[1][4][10]

PQPlatform-CoPro is a cryptographic coprocessor designed to add post-quantum capabilities to an existing security subsystem. PQPerform-Flare is a hardware-based FIPS 140-3 CAVP-certified product designed for high throughput and low latency PQC. PQPerform-Flare supports ML-DSA (FIPS 204) and ML-KEM (FIPS 203) and is optimized for TLS. Building on the architecture of PQPerform-Flare, Inferno integrates multiple instances with load balancing, and can deliver over 1 million key encapsulations per second. PQPerform-Flex combines PQPerform-Inferno with a RISC-V processor to form a complete subsystem.[1][10]

PQShield products come in 4 security levels to address all use cases. The security levels are tested continuously by both PQShield and external labs for certification.[1][4][5][6][7][8][10]

PQShield on the record

Sources

PQShield full record

  1. [1]pqshield.comPQShield · pqshield.com · undated page, accessed September 27, 2026 · Tier A
  2. [2]Pqshield raises 37m in series b funding to deliver the widespread commercial adoption of quantum resistant cryptography 302175607PQShield via PR Newswire · prnewswire.com · published June 20, 2024 · Tier A
  3. [3]PQShield and Kudelski Security Partner to Address Quantum Threat | PQShieldPQShield · published September 29, 2021 · Tier A
  4. [4]Post-quantum Cryptography Experts | Quantum-safe & Quantum-resistant SolutionsPQShield · undated page, accessed October 27, 2026 · Tier A
  5. [5]Post-Quantum Cryptography Solutions | PQShieldPQShield · published April 24, 2025 · Tier A
  6. [6]We are attending, WEF - Annual Meetings of the Global Future Councils and Cybersecurity, 14 Oct | PQShieldPQShield · published October 14, 2025 · Tier A
  7. [7]We are speaking: Security Privacy Identity & Trust (SPIT) SIG event, Cambridge, 28 January 2025 | PQShieldPQShield · published January 28, 2025 · Tier A
  8. [8]We are judging at - Cyber Security Awareness Week Europe, 7-8 November 2024 | PQShieldPQShield · published November 7, 2024 · Tier A
  9. [9]Quantum Security Company: What to Look For | PQShieldPQShield · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  10. [10]Quantum-safe & Quantum-resistant Software, Hardware & UpgradesPQShield · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  11. [11]PQShield partners with Tata Consultancy Services and eShard to meet commercial demand for protecting organisations against quantum the threat | PQShieldPQShield · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A

Thales full record

  1. [1]cpl.thalesgroup.comThales · cpl.thalesgroup.com · undated page, accessed September 27, 2026 · Tier A
  2. [2]CipherTrust Data Security Platform | ThalesThales · undated page, accessed September 27, 2026 · Tier A
  3. [3]Thales reports its order intake and sales first quarter 2026Thales · thalesgroup.com · undated page, accessed September 27, 2026 · Tier A
  4. [4]Thales moves head office paris la defenseThales · thalesgroup.com · undated page, accessed September 27, 2026 · Tier A
  5. [5]Cyber Security Solutions | ThalesThales · undated page, accessed October 29, 2026 · Tier A
  6. [6]Thales Cybersecurity SolutionsThales · undated page, accessed November 3, 2026 · Tier A
  7. [7]Forrester Research Shows Economic Impact of CipherTrust PlatformThales · undated page, accessed November 3, 2026 · Tier A
  8. [8]CMMC 2.0 Cybersecurity Compliance Solutions | ThalesThales · undated page, accessed November 3, 2026 · Tier A
  9. [9]VDI Security SolutionsThales · undated page, accessed November 3, 2026 · Tier A
  10. [10]2025 Cloud Security Research - Latest TrendsThales · undated page, accessed November 3, 2026 · Tier A
  11. [11]Thales appoints David Zolet as CEO of TDSIThales Group · published November 2, 2026 · Tier A
  12. [12]Thales Reviews 2026: Details, Pricing, & Features - G2G2 · undated page, accessed November 3, 2026 · Tier C

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