A trilateral agreement between the UK, US, and Canada has been signed for collaborating on the research, development, testing, and evaluation of AI and cyber technologies to aid resilience and security.

With the collaboration, the goal is to continue reducing technological risks so that “new capabilities can transition into operational use as quickly as possible,” the UK government said.

For instance, one research project already underway is the Cyber Agents for Security Testing and Learning Environments (CASTLE) programme, training AI to autonomously defend networks against persistent advanced cyber threats.

Other research and development areas of interest include defining and creating trustworthy AI systems; human-AI teaming; protecting, detecting attacks on, and measuring the health of the information domain; and producing tools that result in more resilient and secure systems.

The methodologies, algorithms, capabilities, and tools created will be focused on real-world challenges, with the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) taking the lead for the UK, the government noted.

The collaboration has come about following the rapid pace of technological development, “and the future challenges in an ever-changing geopolitical environment.”

Speaking on the agreement, Dr Paul Hollinshead, who serves as Dstl’s chief executive, said: “This partnership with two of our closest allies will help keep the UK secure at home and strong abroad today and in the future.

“Together, we are driving value for money for our respective taxpayers while creating mission critical capabilities through science and technology, keeping our countries and our people safe.”

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Dr Nick Joad, the director of science and technology at UK Ministry of Defence (MoD), also commented: “Our international research collaborations with both the US and Canada are some of our most vital and enduring partnerships.

“This agreement cements our collective commitments to advancing emerging cyber security technologies such as cyber security and artificial intelligence to enhance the defence and security of our nations.”