Beyond algebra
The dominant approach to post-quantum cryptography relies on algebraic problems for which quantum algorithms offer little speedup: lattices, error-correcting codes, hash functions. But a parallel line of research is exploring whether biological complexity can serve as a foundation for cryptographic security.
RNA as a hardness assumption
Recent work on RNA-based cryptographic primitives (Crypto-ncRNA) proposes using the biophysical complexity of RNA folding as a security assumption, replacing the algebraic hypotheses that dominate current standardization. Predicting the three-dimensional structure of an RNA molecule from its sequence is an extremely difficult problem, including for a quantum computer. Other researchers have proposed encryption models inspired by RNA splicing mechanisms (exons and introns), designed to resist quantum attacks.
DNA as a physical substrate
In a different direction, Chemical Unclonable Functions use pools of chemically modified DNA molecules that can no longer be copied, enabling peer-to-peer authentication systems and anti-counterfeiting labels. These functions are both distributable and physically bound to an object, a combination described as quantum-secure and inaccessible by current means. On the algorithmic side, work like Bio-SNOW has shown that DNA-inspired operations (bio-inspired S-Boxes) can serve as building blocks for stream ciphers with performance roughly twice that of their conventional equivalents.
Why it matters to Agades
Biology enters post-quantum cryptography in two ways: as a source of mathematically hard problems (RNA folding, molecular complexity) and as a physical substrate (DNA molecules used as keys or unclonable functions). These approaches remain largely exploratory, but they suggest that the search for quantum-resistant security assumptions does not have to stay within algebra. This is one of the reasons Agades is interested in researchers from biology and the physical sciences, not only computer science.