Comparison
QNSI vs PQShield
An honest, code-grounded side-by-side. PQShield is a genuine post-quantum pioneer - a co-author of all four NIST PQC standards - and supplies the cryptographic IP cores, embedded libraries, and SDK that integrators build into silicon, firmware, and applications. QNSI operates a level up: the full managed PQC platform that runs the keys, secrets, storage, and audit chain. Every row below is backed by a verifiable public source - pqshield.com pages, NIST listings, or QNSI source files at github.com/heossihq/qnsi-public.
The cleanest way to read this comparison is by layer. PQShield sells the cryptographic engine - IP cores for FPGA / ASIC and libraries such as PQCryptoLib and PQMicroLib (down to sub-5 KB RAM for embedded devices). QNSI is the operating platform that turns those kinds of primitives into managed KMS, vault, encrypted storage, and a tamper-evident audit chain, with 90 algorithms, dual-provider cross-verification, and public NIST ACVP evidence. If you are designing a quantum-safe device, PQShield is squarely in your lane; if you need a managed quantum-safe platform behind an API, QNSI is.
Side by side
Twelve categories that matter to a PQC buyer
| Category | QNSI | PQShield |
|---|---|---|
| Layer of the stack | Full managed PQC platform - KMS, quantum-safe vault, SSE-X encrypted storage, encrypted search, AI orchestration, audit chain, and crypto-policy enforcement, delivered as a hosted multi-tenant service with SDKs in 5 languages. You operate keys, secrets, storage, and audit, not just primitives. | Cryptographic IP and software supplier - post-quantum IP cores for FPGA / ASIC, the PQCryptoLib / PQMicroLib embedded libraries, and the PQCryptoLib-SDK (an OpenSSL 3.x provider). PQShield supplies the building blocks an integrator embeds into their own device, firmware, or application. Source: pqshield.com/products. |
| Product form factor | SaaS platform reachable through a public API gateway (api.qnsi.heossi.com), plus on-prem, VPC, and air-gapped deployment topologies for regulated estates. No silicon integration project required to start - sign up and call the API. | Licensed components: hardware IP cores (RTL for FPGA / ASIC), software libraries, and SDKs. At Embedded World 2026 PQShield unveiled PQMicroLib-Core at under 5 KB of RAM for constrained embedded devices, and a full-stack post-quantum TLS for embedded. The customer builds the product around these parts. Products page reviewed 2026-10-21 also lists PQPerform-Flare/Inferno (hardware lattice acceleration, up to 1M KeyEnc/sec) and PQPerform-Flex (Inferno + RISC-V, with HQC named as a future standardization candidate). Source: pqshield.com/products, thequantuminsider.com (2026-03-10). |
| Public PQC algorithm coverage | 90 algorithms across 14 PQC families (27 KEMs + 63 signatures): ML-KEM, ML-DSA, SLH-DSA, FN-DSA / Falcon, BIKE, Classic McEliece, FrodoKEM, NTRU, NTRU-Prime, MAYO, CROSS, UOV, SNOVA. Independently reproducible from the public mirror at github.com/heossihq/qnsi-public. | PQCryptoLib-SDK publicly references ML-KEM (FIPS 203) and ML-DSA (FIPS 204). PQShield co-authored all four NIST PQC standards (ML-KEM, ML-DSA, SLH-DSA, FN-DSA / Falcon) and its libraries target the NIST-finalized set; the public SDK product page lists ML-KEM + ML-DSA specifically. The breadth a customer gets depends on the licensed library configuration. Source: pqshield.com/products/pqc-sdk. |
| NIST standardization pedigree | Implements the NIST-finalized standards (FIPS 203 / 204 / 205) plus the broader liboqs research surface, and publishes per-algorithm ACVP conformance evidence. QNSI is an implementer and platform operator, not a NIST standards author. | A leading NIST PQC standardization contributor - co-authored all four announced standards (ML-KEM, ML-DSA, SLH-DSA, FN-DSA / Falcon). This is a genuine PQShield strength and a strong reason to trust the correctness of its primitives. Source: pqshield.com, prnewswire.com NIST draft-standards announcement. |
| Verifiable conformance evidence | Public, reproducible NIST ACVP conformance at qnsi.heossi.com/verify/conformance: noble 435/435 across FIPS 203/204/205 and liboqs 240/240 ML-KEM, with a published evidence digest. Anyone can re-run the sandbox and check the result - no signup. | PQCryptoLib-Core is described as FIPS 140-3 CAVP / CMVP-ready, and PQShield reports having achieved FIPS 140-3 certification for its hybrid library via the NIST CMVP process. CAVP/CMVP listings live on the NIST validation pages. A public self-serve, re-runnable conformance harness equivalent to QNSI's /verify/conformance is not part of the component-supplier model. Source: pqshield.com/products/certifications, csrc.nist.gov CMVP. |
| Dual-provider cross-verification | Maximum and Government policy sources can require liboqs/noble cross-verification on their overlapping algorithm surface. Exact operation coverage, failure handling, provider attestation, and audit ingestion remain deployment-specific. | Not part of a component / IP offering - cross-verification is a runtime property of an operating platform, not of a primitives library an integrator embeds. We are not asserting PQShield's primitives are unverified; only that a two-independent-implementation runtime model is a platform feature, not an SDK feature. |
| Enforceable crypto-policy tiers | Four enforced tiers with per-tenant algorithm allow-lists. Government permits FIPS-finalized algorithms only and requires a qualified HSM custody path; operations fail closed when that evidence-backed path is unavailable. | Policy enforcement is the responsibility of the system the integrator builds around PQShield's libraries. PQShield publishes CNSA 2.0-compliant configurations, but per-tenant policy-tier guardrails are a property of an operating platform rather than of the supplied components. Source: pqshield.com CNSA 2.0 page. |
| Managed key / secret / storage operations | KMS key generation, rotation, wrap / unwrap, BYOK import; versioned vault with a PQC-envelope target with versioning; SSE-X encrypted object storage; encrypted vector search. The platform actually holds and operates the keys, secrets, and ciphertext on the customer's behalf. | PQShield supplies the cryptographic engine; it does not operate a managed KMS, vault, or encrypted-storage service. The integrator's product (or a separate KMS / HSM) holds and operates keys. This is the core layer difference - different problem, different position in the stack. |
| Deployment model | Hosted multi-tenant SaaS, plus VPC, on-prem, and air-gapped topologies for sovereign workloads. Identical SDK wire contract across deployments. | Embedded and on-device by design - silicon IP and libraries run inside the customer's own hardware / firmware / application, including ultra-constrained embedded targets (sub-5 KB RAM). Ideal where the cryptography must live in the device itself rather than behind an API. |
| Pricing model | Transparent self-serve ladder: $0 free forever (10 GB + 50K API calls), then dev / business / enterprise tiers up to $5,999 business-elite, plus custom enterprise. No credit card for the free tier; tier limits reproducible from the public mirror. | IP / library licensing - enterprise sales and per-design or per-license commercial terms. No public self-serve pricing page or free tier is published, which is normal for a silicon-IP and embedded-library vendor. Source: pqshield.com. |
| Funding + scale | Singapore-based startup (HEOSSI (PTE.) LTD); public benchmarks and a transparent SDK mirror. Built to be the auditable managed PQC platform. | Oxford University spin-out, headquartered in the UK. Raised a $37M Series B in 2024 led by Addition, with Chevron Technology Ventures, Legal & General, Braavos Capital, and Oxford Science Enterprises. Licensees include silicon and embedded-systems vendors (e.g. Microchip Technology). Source: pqshield.com Series B announcement, securityweek.com, crunchbase.com. |
| Open + auditable | Public SDK and integration material is available at github.com/heossihq/qnsi-public, with distribution surfaces on npm, PyPI, Go modules, crates.io, and Maven Central. Each backend and deployment claim requires its own evidence. | PQShield publishes research, solution briefs, and standards contributions publicly, but its production libraries and IP cores are commercially licensed source - appropriate for a cryptographic-IP business model, and not directly comparable to QNSI's public platform mirror. |
When to pick which
Honest decision guide
Pick PQShield if…
- You are designing silicon, firmware, or a constrained embedded device and need post-quantum cryptography to run on the chip itself - including sub-5 KB-RAM targets.
- You want IP cores or a drop-in OpenSSL provider (PQCryptoLib-SDK) to make an existing OpenSSL-based application quantum-resistant without code changes.
- NIST-standards-author pedigree and FIPS 140-3 CAVP / CMVP-ready primitives are your primary procurement criteria.
Pick QNSI if…
- You need a managed platform that actually operates keys, secrets, encrypted storage, and a tamper-evident audit chain - not just a library to embed.
- You want PQC algorithm breadth beyond ML-KEM + ML-DSA, with dual-provider cross-verification and public NIST ACVP evidence you can re-run yourself.
- You want transparent self-serve pricing, a free tier, and a multi-language SDK reachable through an API today.
Pick a different layer if…
- QNSI operates a different layer from PQShield: PQShield's IP and libraries embed on-chip or in-device cryptography; QNSI runs the platform that operates keys, vault, storage, and audit. A buyer may independently deploy each in their own architecture; QNSI claims no integration, compatibility, or partnership with PQShield.
Verify the QNSI claims
Review the source and evidence boundary behind each comparison
QNSI's algorithm registry, policy tiers, cross-verification logic, and tier limits are all published in the public mirror at github.com/heossihq/qnsi-public, and the NIST ACVP conformance evidence is live at qnsi.heossi.com/verify/conformance. The PQShield claims on this page link to pqshield.com primary pages, NIST listings, or named third-party reports. If anything is wrong or outdated, email qnsi-legal@heossi.com - we'll re-verify and correct.