Linking quantum computers to each other just became easier, as researchers have created the first operating system for quantum networks.

“You don’t make a quantum network useful by only building hardware,” says Stephanie Wehner at the Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands. She has long worked on connecting quantum computers into networks that would allow them to exchange information extremely securely and run calculations in new ways, but this requires understanding the technical nitty-gritty of each device involved. Together with her colleagues, Wehner has now developed a way to operate quantum networks more universally.