DOE is advancing the AI-FORTS program to protect U.S. energy infrastructure Sandia National Laboratories’ C2E2 effort aims to improve cyber threat detectionExplore the future of AI at Potomac Officers Club’s 2027 Artificial Intelligence SummitThe Department of Energy is advancing artificial intelligence-powered cybersecurity technologies through a research initiative designed to strengthen the resilience of the nation’s critical infrastructure against cyberattacks, GovCIO Media & Research reported Tuesday.As federal agencies such as the Department of Energy advance AI-powered solutions to strengthen critical infrastructure cybersecurity, industry collaboration and innovation remain essential to addressing emerging threats. The Potomac Officers Club’s 2027 Artificial Intelligence Summit, on March 18, will bring together government and industry leaders to explore how emerging AI technologies can support mission priorities, including cybersecurity, national security and critical infrastructure protection. Register now to learn more!What Is the DOE’s AI-FORTS Program?The department’s Artificial Intelligence for Operationally Resilient Technologies and Systems, or AI-FORTS, program, managed by the Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response, explores how cybersecurity, AI and the energy sector intersect.Launched in 2024, AI-FORTS organizes its research around three complementary priorities: securing energy infrastructure from AI-enabled threats, using AI to strengthen cyber defenses and protecting AI technologies deployed within energy systems.Sage Briscoe, CESER technical program manager and head of AI-FORTS, said introducing new software into critical infrastructure environments requires organizations to assess whether the technology could create additional vulnerabilities or provide attackers with another entry point into a network.AI-FORTS aligns with the first strategic goal in CESER’s fiscal years 2026-2030 strategic plan, which calls for developing world-class security technologies. The department identifies national laboratory partnerships and utility collaboration as important components of its approach to advancing AI capabilities for the energy sector.DOE’s fiscal year 2027 congressional budget justification also identifies AI-FORTS as part of its planned research and development investments in AI-driven cybersecurity solutions. The budget document states that the department intends to shift cybersecurity research toward AI-focused capabilities and technologies that support critical infrastructure’s ability to operate through compromise.What Are the Next Steps for AI-FORTS and C2E2?One example of AI-FORTS research is Communications and Cybersecurity for the Energy Edge, or C2E2, a project developed through CESER’s partnership with Sandia National Laboratories.In September, DOE reported that C2E2 had reduced energy-system data preparation from approximately two months to a few hours. The department also reported that the technology achieved 95-percent accuracy in detecting and locating cyber threats and could provide actionable intelligence in near real time.Over the coming year, the C2E2 team plans to explore the use of large language models to develop user-friendly impact assessments for energy infrastructure cybersecurity personnel.Briscoe emphasized that AI cybersecurity research remains a long-term undertaking, as the technology continues to evolve and introduces new opportunities and challenges.The department plans to continue leveraging industry resources and collaboration to advance AI-FORTS research and strengthen the security of U.S. energy infrastructure.What Other AI Testing Efforts Support the Program?CESER and Sandia are also advancing Scaled Testing for AI Systems, or STAISYS, a project designed to evaluate AI technologies in simulated environments that represent critical energy infrastructure.According to Sandia, STAISYS is one of four Sandia-led projects funded through AI-FORTS. The effort uses emulated cyber-physical environments to assess how AI systems perform under realistic operating conditions and potential cyberattacks.Separately, CESER and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory introduced the Mjölnir AI Testbed in April. The platform is designed to assess the cybersecurity and reliability of AI models intended for energy-sector applications by exposing them to adversarial testing.
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