Focus on Federal: Routing Security, Quantum Readiness, and AI-Accelerated Discovery

Focus on Federal delivers community-informed insights and curated resources to help federal IT leaders support mission-driven planning, operations, and collaboration. Each issue highlights how Internet2’s AI-ready hyperscale network, cloud and security services, research support, and training opportunities help advance federal missions — while strengthening trusted relationships across higher education, research, government, and industry.

Inside this Issue

• New Resource: Practical Tools for Routing Security and RPKI
• Collaboration Spotlight: Quantum-Safe Networking
• From the Community: Genesis Mission and AI-Accelerated Science
• Events Update: Technology Exchange, SC26, and Global Summit

Federal IT leaders are navigating many priorities, including ensuring the security and resilience of their networks, migrating off legacy analog services, preparing for the quantum era, and enabling their organizations to fully participate in AI-accelerated scientific discovery and innovation. These are Internet2 community priorities, too. 

This issue of Focus on Federal brings together resources and opportunities across these fronts. The broader Internet2 community is making progress in this space, and federal and affiliate members don’t have to go it alone or start from zero.

Practical Tools for Routing Security and RPKI

Routing security helps defend federal networks against evolving threats, from accidental misconfigurations to deliberate route hijacks. But adopting critical protections like Resource Public Key Infrastructure (RPKI) can be complex and operationally intensive. Through the NSF-funded ROOTBEER project, Internet2 and CAIDA have developed new tools to help reduce friction and make implementation more approachable, as Internet2’s Steven Wallace recently demonstrated during his keynote at ARIN 57.

Members of the Internet2 community are already making meaningful progress in RPKI adoption, including NOAA N-Wave, whose partnership with NTIA supported the creation of RPKI Route Origin Authorizations across U.S. Department of Commerce bureaus and produced a federal-wide RPKI playbook. 

Federal network operators looking to enhance the routing security and resiliency of their networks can access practical tools at rootbeer.internet2.edu.

Quantum-Safe Networking

Quantum technologies are no longer on the horizon; they’re here. In the federal space, the most recent executive order reinforces that federal agencies must transition all high-value assets (HVAs) and high-impact systems to post-quantum cryptography (PQC) for key establishment by Dec. 31, 2030, and for digital signatures by Dec. 31, 2031. After completing HVAs and high-impact systems, agencies must also develop and submit a broader migration plan to the Office of Management and Budget for their remaining systems.

As traditional encryption methods face growing threats from advances in quantum computing, Internet2 is actively positioning its members to stay ahead. From the recent  PQC demo on the Internet2 national backbone to a PQC data-in-transit service offering currently in development, Internet2 members will have access to quantum-ready infrastructure without having to build it from the ground up.

That collaborative value came through clearly at the 2026 Florida LambdaRail (FLR) Annual Meeting, where Tripti Sinha, Internet2 president and CEO, reinforced that networks built together are fundamentally more powerful than anything a single institution can build alone. As a national research and education (R&E) network, Internet2 is uniquely positioned to enable and expand regional networks’ quantum initiatives, working closely with our connector community. 

The FLR Annual Meeting included two sessions on the topic: an internal discussion among network infrastructure providers exploring opportunities beyond security and QKD applications (e.g., quantum networking), followed by a vendor presentation covering technical implementation details. Both reflected the kind of cross-sector, community-driven dialogue that defines the Internet2 community’s approach to emerging technology. Prior to and since the FLR event, Internet2 staff have met with quantum industry leaders across multiple technical areas, building the relationships and knowledge base for Internet2 to serve as a quantum-enabling asset for federal and R&E members alike. 

To learn more about how Internet2 can support federal quantum readiness and research networking needs, contact federal@internet2.edu.

Genesis Mission and AI-Accelerated Science

The Department of Energy’s (DOE) Genesis Mission is a national effort to mobilize national laboratories, industry, and universities to advance science innovation by harnessing high performance computing, quantum, and AI capabilities. 

In March, Internet2 submitted formal comments to the DOE Office of Science on behalf of its members regarding the Genesis Mission and the development of an American AI workforce — advocating for consortial collaboration models, federated identity frameworks, and sustained investment in the cyberinfrastructure workforce. This advocacy helps ensure that the connectivity and collaboration infrastructure needed for AI-driven science remain aligned with the needs of the R&E community.

To go deeper on federal policy developments, including the Genesis Mission, join Internet2 Government Relations for a webinar on July 15 at 2 p.m. ET: Internet2, Uncle Sam, and You — A Washington Science Policy Update for Summer 2026.

Inder Monga, executive director for the DOE’s Energy Sciences Network (ESnet), recently presented a high-level overview at the 2026 Internet2 Community Exchange on how the Genesis Mission and the American Science Cloud are being built to support the next decade of U.S. innovation. He shared how these initiatives leverage AI and cloud-native infrastructure to accelerate breakthroughs in energy and discovery science, and how they are redefining the U.S. research landscape. 

To learn more, watch the recording of Inder Monga’s session or download the presentation slides. If you missed Community Exchange, access the available presentation slides and the video playlist with over a dozen select sessions.