Executive Order 14413: Changing the Locks Without Closing the Building
Executive Order 14413 and the broader federal post-quantum cryptography mandate signal that PQC is moving from a technical recommendation to a requirement for continued participation in government and increasingly regulated markets. This is not another security-program rollout: it is the forced replacement of a hidden mathematical dependency embedded across operating systems, networks, clouds, applications, identities, devices, certificates, code-signing systems, hardware, software libraries, supply chains, and long-lived data while all those systems remain interconnected and operational. The impact will extend beyond prime contractors through cloud providers, integrators, technology vendors, critical-infrastructure operators, and downstream suppliers, reshaping product roadmaps, procurement requirements, validation processes, and enterprise architectures. This panel will examine how industry can execute the largest coordinated technology transition no single entity controls, make invisible cryptography observable and governable, manage years of coexistence between legacy, hybrid, and post-quantum systems, and avoid turning the transition itself into a source of operational disruption and systemic risk.
Qrypt CTO and co-founder, Denis Mandich, focuses on quantum security, R&D, post quantum encryption (PQC) algorithms and standards bodies. He holds several patents in cryptography, cyber technologies and information processing. Denis a founding member of the Quantum Economic Development Consortium (QED-C), a founding member of the NSF-funded Mid-Atlantic Quantum Alliance (MQA), founding member of the Center for Quantum Technologies (CQT), advisor to the Quantum Startup Foundry and Board member of quantum chip manufacturer Quside.
Prior to joining Qrypt, Denis served 20 years in the US Intel Community working on national security projects, cyber infrastructure, and advanced technology development. He has degrees in Physics from Rutgers University and speaks native level Croatian and Russian.
Travis Ewert joined Digital Realty in 2023 as Global Head of Platform Development. He has oversight of core PlatformDIGITAL® development and global responsibilities for product engineering, network architecture and engineering, network SW development, network security, colo/whitespace design and planning, and Digital Realty’s platform-AI pursuits.
Travis has over 25 years of product and technology development experience and senior executive roles with several global service providers. These include TW Telecom, Level 3, and CenturyLink. He has played an integral part in the development and introduction of many industry firsts for network-on-demand, programmable networking, personalized (AI-driven) CX, and broader that are now leveraged by large network operators and suppliers across the globe.
