Industry Group Launches to Improve AI Security
More than a dozen technology firms have teamed up to launch an industry group dedicated to making artificial intelligence applications more secure. The Coalition for Secure AI, or CoSAI, was announced today at the Aspen Security Forum.
About CoSAI
CoSAI will operate under the wing of OASIS, a nonprofit that oversees the development of several dozen open-source software projects. Many of those projects focus on easing cybersecurity tasks such as automating breach response workflows.
Founding Members
CoSAI’s founding members include OpenAI and Anthropic PBC, the two best-funded startups in the large language model ecosystem, as well as rivals Cohere Inc. and GenLab. In the public cloud market, the consortium is backed by Amazon Web Services Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Google LLC. They are joined by Nvidia Corp., Intel Corp., IBM Corp., Cisco Systems Inc., PayPal Holdings Inc., Wiz Inc. and Chainguard Inc.
The coalition is launching with two main objectives. The first is to develop tools and technical guidance that will help organizations secure their AI applications. According to the group’s backers, the other goal is to create an ecosystem where companies can share AI-related cybersecurity best practices and technologies.
Launching Three Open-Source Workstreams
CoSAI is launching three open-source workstreams, or initiatives, to advance those goals. Each project tackles a different subset of the tasks involved in securing AI applications.
First Initiative: Scanning AI Workloads for Cybersecurity Risks
The first initiative is designed to help software teams scan their machine learning workloads for cybersecurity risks. To that end, the consortium will develop a taxonomy of common vulnerabilities and ways to address them. CoSAI members will also create a cybersecurity scorecard designed to help developers monitor AI systems for vulnerabilities and report any issues they find to other stakeholders.
Second Initiative: Mitigating AI Cybersecurity Risks
The second inaugural project seeks to ease the task of mitigating AI cybersecurity risks. The goal is to simplify the process of identifying “investments and mitigation techniques to address the security impact of AI use,” Google cybersecurity executives Heather Adkins and Phil Venables wrote in a blog post today.
Third Initiative: Addressing Software Supply Chain Risks
The third initiative that CoSAI detailed today focuses on addressing software supply chain risks. Those are vulnerabilities caused by software components that a company sources from external sources such as GitHub repositories.
Future Initiatives
CoSAI plans to launch additional cybersecurity initiatives in the future. The initiatives will be supervised by a technical steering committee of AI experts from the private sector and academia.
Conclusion
In conclusion, CoSAI’s establishment marks an important step towards improving the security of AI applications. With the backing of leading technology firms, this coalition aims to develop tools, technical guidance, and best practices to help organizations secure their AI applications. As the technology continues to evolve, it is crucial that stakeholders prioritize cybersecurity to ensure the safe adoption of AI.
FAQs
Q: What is CoSAI?
A: CoSAI is a coalition of technology firms dedicated to making artificial intelligence applications more secure.
Q: What are the objectives of CoSAI?
A: CoSAI’s primary objectives are to develop tools and technical guidance for securing AI applications and to create an ecosystem for sharing AI-related cybersecurity best practices and technologies.
Q: Who are the founding members of CoSAI?
A: CoSAI’s founding members include OpenAI, Anthropic PBC, Cohere Inc., GenLab, Amazon Web Services Inc., Microsoft Corp., Google LLC, Nvidia Corp., Intel Corp., IBM Corp., Cisco Systems Inc., PayPal Holdings Inc., Wiz Inc., and Chainguard Inc.
Q: What are the three open-source workstreams launched by CoSAI?
A: CoSAI has launched three open-source workstreams: scanning AI workloads for cybersecurity risks, mitigating AI cybersecurity risks, and addressing software supply chain risks.
Q: What is the future of CoSAI?
A: CoSAI plans to launch additional cybersecurity initiatives in the future, supervised by a technical steering committee of AI experts from the private sector and academia.
