Frazer-Nash has been awarded a new two-year contract by the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) to mature research into cyber situational awareness to support human users or future human/artificial intelligence (AI) users.
This new project, Autonomous Defensive Cyber (ADC), builds upon the successful Autonomous Resilient Cyber Defence (ARCD), a three-year programme led by Frazer-Nash to understand how future MOD technology could use AI and machine learning (ML) to respond and recover to cyber-attacks. Over 100 novel research projects for cyber-resilience were completed in this industry-wide collaboration with much of the research maturing to the point of early user trials.
Following the completion of ARCD earlier this year, the new ADC contract will exploit and extend its research by evolving ARCD concepts into operational capability. Over the two years, ADC will address emerging user requirements and support the needs of the recent Strategic Defence Review.
A Dstl spokesperson said: “ARCD was a first of its kind contract for Dstl and helped us and the industry understand the strengths and limitations of AI and ML in cyber defence as well as optimal environments for training, evaluating and demonstrating its effectiveness. ADC will extend this work further and deliver all important outcomes that can be used in everyday practice”
Steve Little, Frazer-Nash ADC Programme Lead adds “We are enormously proud of the achievements and legacy of the ARCD programme and how, through industry collaboration, it filled a crucial information gap in the way that AI and ML can be used in cyber defence. We’re excited to partner with Dstl to further this work on cyber-resilience through ADC.”
