Army, DOD team with Howard University on AI center

By U.S. Army CCDC Army Research Laboratory Public AffairsNovember 23, 2020

The Army’s corporate laboratory guides research in artificial intelligence at a new center of excellence that begins work this work month at Howard University.
The Army’s corporate laboratory guides research in artificial intelligence at a new center of excellence that begins work this work month at Howard University. (Photo Credit: Shutterstock) VIEW ORIGINAL

ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. -- The U.S. Army is helping to guide research at a $7.5 million Department of Defense center of excellence created to deliver artificial intelligence technologies and shape the future.

Managed by the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, now known as DEVCOM, Army Research Laboratory, the Howard University Center of Excellence in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning will explore vital civilian applications and multi-domain military operations in three main areas:

·     Key AI applications for DOD

·     Technological foundation for trustworthy AI technologies

·     Infrastructure for AI research and development

Infrastructure plans include fellowships and scholarships for U.S. science, technology, engineering and math graduate students and early-career research faculty at the laboratory. This supports ongoing efforts within the Army’s corporate laboratory to expand its science and technology talent base.

“This center of excellence is a big win for the Army and DOD on many fronts,” said Dr. Brian Sadler, Army senior research scientist for intelligent systems who is managing this partnership for DOD. “The research is directly aligned with Army priorities and will address pressing problems in both developing and applying AI tools and techniques in several key applications.”

Sadler said the laboratory is “privileged to team with Howard University, an intellectual center for the nation.”

“Diversity of science and diversity of the future S&T talent base go hand-in-hand in this new and exciting partnership,” he said.

The center will be led by Howard’s Prof. Danda B. Rawat, professor of computer science and director of Howard’s Data Science & Cybersecurity Center.

Researchers will begin their work in mid-November with a kickoff meeting.

Rawat said the agreement includes collaboration with ARL in research and publications, mentoring, internships, research workshops/seminars, training and research exchange visits at both ARL and Howard.

Founded in 1867, Howard University is a private, historically black research university founded in 1867 that is comprised of 13 schools and colleges. Students pursue studies in more than 120 areas leading to undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees.

According to its website, the university operates with a “commitment to excellence in truth and service” and has produced one Schwarzman scholar, three Marshall scholars, four Rhodes scholars, 11 Truman scholars, 25 Pickering fellows and more than 165 Fulbright recipients. Howard also produces more on-campus African-American Ph.D. recipients than any other university in the United States.

Visit the laboratory's Media Center to discover more Army science and technology stories
(Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

DEVCOM Army Research Laboratory is an element of the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command. As the Army’s corporate research laboratory, ARL is operationalizing science to achieve transformational overmatch. Through collaboration across the command’s core technical competencies, DEVCOM leads in the discovery, development and delivery of the technology-based capabilities required to make Soldiers more successful at winning the nation’s wars and come home safely. DEVCOM is a major subordinate command of the Army Futures Command.