A column, co-authored by Ashok Goel and Jim Donlon, and introducing the seven new NSF AI Institutes, is now published in AAAI's AI Magazine. The column provides a brief overview of each of the new institutes, as well as an overview of the AI Virtual Organization (AIVO), which was formed to strengthen the network of AI institutes and help them expand.
The column describes the ACTION Institute:
The AI institute for Agent-based Cyber Threat Intelligence and Operation (ACTION) was funded by a partnership between NSF, DHS S&T, and IBM in response to the need to develop intelligent agents that can model the actions, beliefs, and goals of machine and human agents involved in next-generation cybersecurity scenarios. ACTION will develop novel approaches that leverage AI to anticipate and take corrective actions against cyberthreats that target the security and privacy of computer networks and their users. The team of researchers will work with experts in security operations to develop a revolutionary approach to cybersecurity, in which AI-enabled intelligent security agents cooperate with humans across the cyber-defense life cycle to jointly improve the resilience of the security of computer systems over time. ACTION is directed by Principal Investigator Giovanni Vigna (University of California, Santa Barbara) together with co-principal investigators Wenke Lee (Georgia Institute of Technology), Dawn Song (University of California, Berkeley), and Dongyan Xu (Purdue University).
A full Special Issue of AI Magazine on the 18 older AI Institutes is expected to be published by March 2024.