Many of you may have heard of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). For those who don’t, it’s the research and development division of the US Department of Defense. Today, Microsoft announced a new partnership with DARPA to help contestants in its current AI Cyber ​​Challenge.

The official website of the competition Describes the rules and prize for this challenge. Basically, it is a two-year event that asks the leading minds in the field of artificial intelligence and cyber to design systems designed to protect critical infrastructure for the United States.

B Microsoft’s blog, the company describes its involvement in the DARPA AI Cyber ​​Challenge. It will allow contestants to use the latest artificial intelligence models using its Azure cloud services.

Microsoft adds:

Innovation with AI and cybersecurity is even more important for areas like critical infrastructure where the stakes are highest. We’ve seen an increase in infrastructure attacks in places like Ukraine where our threat intelligence teams have tracked multiple waves of cyber attacks. We are putting this learning to work by supporting the AI ​​Cyber ​​Challenge to help the nation protect critical infrastructure, from financial systems to public services, from cyber threats.

Microsoft will award these teams up to $150,000 in Azure credits, along with $200,000 worth of Microsoft business products.

The two-year competition will take place in two stages. The first phase will conclude at the DEF CON 2024 security conference, which will be held in Las Vegas on August 8-11. At that time, DARPA will select the top seven teams to become semi-finalists. Each of these teams will win $2 million.

These seven teams will then enter the second and final phase of the DARPA AI Cyber ​​Challenge. The final winners will be revealed at DEF CON 2025. The winning team will receive $4 million, the second-place team will receive $3 million, and the third-place team will receive $1.5 million.