Virginia Tech National Security Institute

Meeting the needs of the intelligence and defense communities

Using the Ted and Karyn Hume Center for National Security and Technology as the foundation, the National Security Institute aspires to become the nation’s preeminent academic organization at the nexus of interdisciplinary research, technology, policy, and talent development to advance national security.

Research

The National Security Institute’s research activities principally focus on cybersecurity, resilience, and autonomy challenges faced by the national security and homeland security communities. The National Security Institute has built deep technical expertise in a number of general areas, which can be applied across mission-focused research initiatives that change as the nature of the national security threat to the United States changes. These core technical areas are built on strong partnership that are built around specific technical disciplines with academic departments and centers. Research is splot across three divisions

Mission Systems Division

National security applications of smallsats, mission oriented satellite constellation design, and airborne autonomous vehicles

Intelligent Systems Division

National security applications of data science, machine learning, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and complex systems engineering

Spectrum Dominance Division

National security applications of radio frequency machine learning (RFML), embedded security, and quantum information