I-Corps: Translation Potential of Quantum-Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Energy and Infrastructure Security and Resilience

Award ID: 2632169

This I-Corps project is based on the development of a quantum-Artificial Intelligence (AI) cybersecurity platform. This technology is designed to help organizations identify cryptographic vulnerabilities, assess readiness for post-quantum cryptography, and strengthen the cybersecurity of critical infrastructure and enterprise information systems. Current existing cybersecurity solutions generally provide limited visibility into cryptographic assets and post-quantum readiness. This technology integrates artificial intelligence, cryptographic risk assessment and advanced security analysis to enable continuous monitoring and risk prioritization. This technology may improve cyber resilience across multiple sectors that depend on secure digital communications while reducing the complexity and cost of preparing for the transition to post-quantum cryptography. This may strengthen national cybersecurity, improve the protection of critical infrastructure, and accelerate adoption of quantum-resilient security technologies across government and industry. This I-Corps project utilizes experiential learning coupled with first-hand investigation of the industry ecosystem to assess the translation potential of a quantum-AI cybersecurity platform. This technology combines automated cryptographic asset discovery, artificial intelligence-based risk prioritization, entropy analysis, and post-quantum cryptography readiness assessment within a unified software environment. It utilizes research in artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, cryptographic analytics, and quantum computing to develop an integrated approach for identifying cryptographic weaknesses and supporting risk-informed migration toward post-quantum cryptography. Potential applications include electric utilities, grid operators, renewable energy providers, data centers, and other critical infrastructure operators. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

NSF Program Director: Ruth Shuman