To advance the benefits and safety of the technology behind unmanned vehicles and the array of artificial intelligence (AI) programs automating our devices, offices, homes and community grids, the Johns Hopkins Institute for Assured Autonomy (IAA) has invested in a portfolio of 10 state-of-the-art research projects. These two-year projects – uniting researchers across Johns Hopkins University (JHU) – have been underway since early 2020 and promise to transform the technology sector and society.

Supported by $6.5 million in funding over two years, the research spans a range of practical applications, such as:

  • Developing a policy framework for autonomous vehicles
  • Developing software for safe traffic management in national airspace
  • Assuring safe operations of AI-enabled systems in offices, hospitals and other social spaces
  • Assuring privacy and fairness in AI technologies
  • Strengthening AI systems against adversarial attacks

Last year, JHU committed $30 million to establish the IAA as a national center of excellence for assured AI and smart autonomous systems, run jointly by the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) and the JHU Whiting School of Engineering (WSE). In addition to propelling advanced research in the sector, IAA is forming partnerships with stakeholders across sectors and convening top experts for assuring the autonomous world.

A year ago, IAA selected its first research projects after issuing a call for proposals from across Johns Hopkins. The effort is led by the institute’s research director, David Silberberg, an assistant program manager at APL, working closely with IAA Co-Directors Tony Dahbura (WSE) and Cara LaPointe (APL) and the Institute’s extended research team.