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2024 Year in Review

Always focused on the future, the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) advances software as a strategic advantage for national security. We lead research and direct transition of software engineering, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence technologies at the intersection of academia, industry, and government. We serve the nation as a federally funded research and development center (FFRDC) sponsored by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) and are based at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), a global research university annually rated among the best for its programs in computer science and engineering.

The 2024 SEI Year in Review highlights the work of the institute undertaken during the fiscal year spanning October 1, 2023, to September 30, 2024.

The Stories

Carleton, Lewis, and Danyliw Selected for Professional Leadership Posts

Carleton, Lewis, and Danyliw Selected for Professional Leadership Posts

Three SEI leaders were chosen for high positions in the IEEE Computer Society and the Internet Engineering Task Force.

Nielsen Receives 2024 Cyber Security Hall of Fame Honor

Nielsen Receives 2024 Cyber Security Hall of Fame Honor

SEI director and chief executive officer Paul Nielsen was inducted into the Cyber Security Hall of Fame in the fall of 2024.

The Rapid Evolution of Scaled Software Solutions for National Defense

The Rapid Evolution of Scaled Software Solutions for National Defense

SEI chief technology officer Tom Longstaff discusses how SEI research can help the DoD rapidly scale artificial intelligence and autonomous systems.

AI Eye in the Sky Improves Artillery Fire Missions

AI Eye in the Sky Improves Artillery Fire Missions

The Shrike prototype merges machine-learning threat recognition and location capability with off-the-shelf unmanned aerial systems to augment artillery forward observation.

SEI and AI2C Collaborate to Create Effective AI Solutions for the Army

SEI and AI2C Collaborate to Create Effective AI Solutions for the Army

The five-year relationship has helped the Army establish the technical underpinnings for important artificial intelligence systems.

Training the DoD to Leverage AI for Strategic Advantage

Training the DoD to Leverage AI for Strategic Advantage

The SEI has created and delivered more than 150 hours of training materials to fill the gap on AI Engineering for the Department of Defense.

Advanced Malware Academy Enhances Defense Cyberspace Capability

Advanced Malware Academy Enhances Defense Cyberspace Capability

The SEI piloted a four-week mentorship program to jumpstart malware analysis capability and develop a certification for the U.S. armed services.

First State of DoD DevSecOps Study Finds Excellence and Opportunities

First State of DoD DevSecOps Study Finds Excellence and Opportunities

The study for the DoD Chief Information Officer found the department should scale up its pockets of DevSecOps success.

Convening Community, Advancing Software for National Defense

Convening Community, Advancing Software for National Defense

The SEI brings together software leaders and practitioners from industry, government, and academia to advance software as a strategic advantage.

CMMC Program Safeguards Information in the Defense Industrial Base

CMMC Program Safeguards Information in the Defense Industrial Base

The Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification, which the SEI helped create, has become an official DoD rule.

Establishing Modern Software Processes for Satellite Data Computing Laboratory

Establishing Modern Software Processes for Satellite Data Computing Laboratory

The SEI established the Overhead Persistent Infrared (OPIR) Tools, Applications, and Processing (TAP) Lab’s collaborative computing environment and software development processes.

SEI Machine Learning Prototype Helps the Air Force “Fuel More Fight”

SEI Machine Learning Prototype Helps the Air Force “Fuel More Fight”

Estimating fuel savings from aircraft modifications is a laborious process for Air Force experts, but not for an SEI machine learning model.

Leading AI Security Incident Response

Leading AI Security Incident Response

In its first year, the SEI’s Artificial Intelligence Security Incident Response Team (AISIRT) learned how AI meets and challenges cybersecurity practices.

Secure by Design Portfolio Supports Software Supply Chain Risk Management

Secure by Design Portfolio Supports Software Supply Chain Risk Management

Research in APIs, Rust programming, large language models for secure code, and community events support building security into the software development lifecycle.

Evaluating Risk Mitigation Practices for Generative AI in High-Sensitivity Domains

Evaluating Risk Mitigation Practices for Generative AI in High-Sensitivity Domains

Three SEI studies evaluated the state of the practice of machine unlearning, bias auditing, and AI red-teaming.

Polar Unlocks DevSecOps Data in Highly Regulated Environments to Improve Operational Decisions

Polar Unlocks DevSecOps Data in Highly Regulated Environments to Improve Operational Decisions

Polar is a secure, scalable framework providing real-time visibility into the current state of an organization’s DevSecOps infrastructure.

Lasting Impact: SEI Core Capabilities Help Launch the F-35

Lasting Impact: SEI Core Capabilities Help Launch the F-35

Some of the SEI’s longest standing areas of expertise—software engineering, acquisitions, and Agile—have seen the F-35 fighter jet program through one of the military’s most complex weapons acquisitions.

Lasting Impact: The CERT Secure Coding Initiative

Lasting Impact: The CERT Secure Coding Initiative

The practical guidance in the SEI’s seminal CERT secure coding standards has improved the security and resilience of software and systems that our national security, critical infrastructure, and daily lives depend on.

Professional Organization Leadership Promotes National Defense Mission

Professional Organization Leadership Promotes National Defense Mission

In 2024, many SEI researchers held leadership positions in professional organizations.