The UK government has signed a collaboration agreement with the US and Canada that will see the countries work together to harness new artificial intelligence (AI) and cybersecurity technologies.
THE Ministry of Defense The Ministry of Defence’s Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL) will lead the work in the UK, while the US Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the Department of Defence and Research and Development Canada (DRDC) will manage the work in their respective countries.
The countries will jointly research, develop, test and evaluate new technologies related to AI, cybersecurity and information technology.
Nick Joad, the Department of Defense’s chief science and technology officer, said international research collaborations with the United States and Canada are “some of our most vital and enduring partnerships,” adding, “This agreement solidifies our collective commitments to advancing emerging cybersecurity technologies such as cybersecurity and AI to enhance the defense and security of our nations.”
The two countries hope to leverage new methodologies, algorithms and tools by developing concrete concepts of operations. This collaboration will focus on current and future challenges of a changing geopolitical landscape and aims to strengthen the defense and security of the three countries.
DARPA Director Stefanie Tompkins said the three countries were “stronger together than apart,” adding: “The trilateral collaboration is a major step forward toward greater understanding in the priority research and development areas outlined. Working with our international science and technology partners helps us all leverage each other’s individual strengths to develop much greater collective capabilities.”
The collaboration agreement also includes plans to reduce technological risks so that new features can be introduced as quickly as possible.
A project is already underway to train AI to autonomously defend networks against persistent cyber threats. Other areas of collaboration that will be explored include human-AI teamwork, defining and building trustworthy AI systems, protecting and detecting attacks in the information domain, and producing new tools and techniques – such as rapid software certification – to increase the resilience and security of systems.
DRDC Canada Assistant Deputy Minister Jaspinder Komal said that due to the rapid evolution of AI in “dual-use technologies with both civilian and military applications, we have identified this as a priority for defence research.”
“We are pleased to work with our allies in the UK and the US on this trilateral agreement, which will potentially enable a host of cooperative research projects in the areas of cybersecurity and information technology,” Komal said.
In February 2024, the UK signed two other collaboration agreements with Canadajoining forces to examine AI research and development (R&D) – particularly AI computing, which is a critical part of AI development, as well as a focus on science and innovation.
Earlier this month, the UK also signed the world’s first “legally binding” agreement. treaty on AI and human rights, which commits to Implementation of guarantees against various threats posed by technology.
