ROME, N.Y. — Rome cyber and information-security company Assured Information Security Inc. (AIS) was recently awarded an Artificial Intelligence-Based Endpoint Defense (ABED) $98.5 million contract focused on researching artificial intelligence (AI)-based techniques.

The goal is to enhance the effectiveness and increase the autonomy of cyber capabilities being developed by the Air Force and its partnering combatant commands. It will result in the delivery of cyber capabilities with greater flexibility, wider applicability, increased precision, and better security, the company says.

“ABED is an opportunity for AIS to integrate and transition unprecedented defenses against the primary attack vectors employed by our adversaries, most notably embedding sophisticated attack code and data in digital files,” Salvatore Paladino, AIS director of cyber operations research and development, said in a news release. The work will leverage AI and machine learning (ML) techniques to reduce the manpower and expertise required to operate cyber tools effectively, at scale, and at the pace of cyber, he added. The solutions will provide an advantage to the Air Force, the Department of Defense, and commercial entities.

AIS will complete the work at its Rome headquarters with an expected finish date of Sept. 30, 2028. The contract will create up to 10 new jobs at AIS and secure 50 existing jobs for the next five years, per the company. The Air Force Research Laboratory in Rome is the contracting authority for the award.

“This critical federal investment puts Central New York at the center of the transition into the new AI age right here in Rome, by investing in artificial intelligence to advance U.S. cyber capabilities and integrate new and unprecedented defenses against American adversaries,” U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer (D-NY) said. “This major $98.5 million investment will not only strengthen our national security by harnessing the power of AI innovation, something I’ve been focusing on a lot recently in my new SAFE Innovation framework, but it will also provide a significant boost to the upstate economy and channel the talents of central New York’s world-class workforce for years to come.”

ABED is a Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) Phase III award. The SBIR program is a competitive one that encourages domestic small businesses to engage in federal research and development aimed at commercializing solutions. A phase III project focuses on work that builds upon things developed under prior SBIR agreements. This is the third phase III SBIR contract that AIS was awarded and the second in the last three years.

Founded in 2001, AIS provides government and commercial customers with research, development, consulting, testing, forensics, remediation, and training services. AIS has more than 200 employees located throughout the U.S.