CORRECT BY CONSTRUCTION FOR LSCOA
gain advantages in the DOD,” said Mark A. “Al” Mollenkopf, science advisor to the U.S. Army Cyber Commanding General.
Te Army can make protracted LSCO possible—think secure and survivable weapons systems, transport platforms, critical infrastructure and lines of communication that are ready for the next fight.
Rapid action to implement formal methods tools in current and future systems can dramatically reduce the DOD’s software vulnerabilities. In fact, DARPA estimates that broad application can eliminate 80 to 90% of our military’s cyber vulnerabilities.
“Formal methods application should start at the outset of the formal requirements process to secure our weapons systems and other platforms,” said Maj. Gen. Jake S. Kwon, director of Strate- gic Operations, Headquarters, Department of the Army G-3/5/7. “We can ill afford to retrofit our weapons systems after they’re fielded. As formations continue to experiment with COTS solu- tions and coding at the edge, formal methods provide a clear advantage in securing our innovation efforts.”
ASSURANCES IN THE FUTURE OPERATING ENVIRONMENT Although formal methods offer many benefits, they are not a silver bullet. Te adversary has a vote and is already enhancing their cyberattack TTPs.
Future Army systems increasingly rely on artificial intelligence (AI)-based technologies to propel the capabilities of robotics and decision support tools towards the complex military scenarios in the future. However, large neural network architectures and foundational models create new opportunities for adversaries to corrupt data feeds and exploit underlying algorithms. DARPA is exploring how we can secure these emerging AI technologies. Moreover, the Army can help them understand the future oper- ational concepts and lean forward on new requirements to build assurances for our future military systems. Tese assurances will ensure that military AI-based systems perform as expected in complex and dynamic battlefields.
CONCLUSION Te Army and DARPA are collaborating on a capstone applica- tion of formal methods. Instead of a single platform, the Army is considering an entire acquisition line. Te Air Force and Navy are also participating. In the aggregate, these capstone efforts will signal that the DOD Enterprise understands the software vulner- abilities underpinning the Interim National Defense Strategy and
56 Army AL&T Magazine Summer 2025
supporting warfighting concepts, and serves as a leap forward in creating learned resilience across the joint force.
For more information, go to
https://www.darpa.mil/research/ research-topic-spotlights/formal-methods.
COL. TRENT MILLS is the Army advisor to the DARPA
director. He is an Army strategist with a Ph.D. in rhetoric from Georgia State University, and holds an M.A. in national security and strategy from the Naval War College, an M.A. in English from Washington State University and a B.A. in English from Gonzaga University. He has a deep background in modernization efforts for the land domain (U.K. and U.S.). His previous assignment was with the Director of the Army staff.
MAJ. NIKESH KAPADIA is a DARPA innovation fellow leading fundamental science research towards Army operational
challenges. He is
an Army FA-49 (Operations
Research and Systems Analysis) officer with an M.S. in systems engineering from the University of Virginia and a B.S. in mechanical engineering from the U.S. Military Academy.
ROBERT PRICE, LT. COL., USA (Ret.), is completing his 15th year as a systems engineering and technical advisor supporting the DARPA Director’s Office. He holds an M.S. in information technology management from Colorado Technical University; an M.S. in international relations from Troy State University; an M.S. in data analytics and policy from Johns Hopkins University; and a B.A. in psychology from the University of Virginia. Before retiring, he served two tours on the Army staff, contributing to critical digitization efforts in the G-3/5/7 and Program Objective Memorandum development
in the G-8.
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