AI Squared has seen value in our three-party Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) between AI Squared, NSA and NGA.

We’re able to meet with personnel and specific subject matter experts (SMEs) on a consistent basis, merge resources, and discover unique solutions to real-world mission challenges. We are also able to place company employees on-site multiple days per week resulting in the acceleration of our innovation reaching those who need it the most, the operator.

We also joined the MSI CRADA as an industry partner along with Bowie State University. AI Squared developed an internship to pilot NSAs curriculum, Hacking for Intelligence, that enabled us to teach and work with students from universities that are MSI CRADA partners in collaboration with NSA ORTA. Students were provided access to NSA mission problems and taught critical skills using lean startup concepts to develop solutions.

The students leverage this access to further research, innovate, or commercialize the IP leading to a showcase event at the end of the event. This showcase includes executive level personnel from CRADA industry partners and federal agencies.

Hacking for Intelligence has led to numerous internships and full-time jobs for these students and is an opportunity developed similar to the Hacking for Defense course created by Steve Blank and offered at Stanford University. We’ve seen the Department of Defense and Intelligence Community gain awareness of the talent within these schools (e.g. Bowie State University) and begin to build a pipeline which has led to 1) students interning and working for DoD and IC agencies and 2) funding from these agencies to HBCUs which was not attainable before.