Jane Edwards 
- MITRE and ORNL have committed to joint projects and investments
- The institute will tap existing MITRE and ORNL computing resources
- The 2027 Defense R&D Summit will explore AI, quantum computing and more
MITRE and the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory, or ORNL, have established the Joint Institute for Computational and Super Intelligence Advantage, or JICSA, as part of a push to speed up the deployment of advanced computing capabilities to address national security challenges.
Advances in AI and quantum computing continue to shape how government and industry approach national security challenges. Department of War and national security technology officials will share investment insights at the Potomac Officers Club’s 2027 Defense R&D Summit on Feb. 4, where discussions will cover unmanned systems, 5G and future-generation wireless capabilities, trusted AI and autonomy, quantum computing and advanced space technologies. Save your seat now to hear from the leaders shaping defense technology priorities.
What Is JICSA?
MITRE said Thursday JICSA is a joint effort with ORNL to develop, test and field AI, quantum computing and other technologies that support U.S. national security and economic competitiveness.
The institute’s name uses super intelligence, the term President Donald Trump directed executive branch agencies to use in place of artificial intelligence through a September executive order.
JICSA will tap resources the two organizations already operate, such as MITRE’s Federal AI Sandbox and ORNL’s Lux at the Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility. The institute will also work with industry partners to apply commercial technologies to federal mission needs.
Under the effort, MITRE and ORNL will jointly design and validate computing tools and move them into operational use for high-priority national missions. The institute will initially focus on algorithmic pathfinding, identifying new uses for AI models, AI architectures and quantum algorithms that align with government mission requirements.
JICSA will also conduct systems evaluation, drawing on both organizations’ cyber and AI security experience to help sponsors benchmark, verify and test computing systems in mission settings. Through its third focus area, decision science, the institute will use advanced computing to make modeling and simulation more accurate in high-stakes mission areas.
The organizations plan to pursue joint projects and investments that give national security users a direct route from identifying a mission requirement to fielding a trusted capability.
What Did MITRE & ORNL Officials Say About JICSA?
Mark Peters, president and CEO of MITRE and a two-time Wash100 awardee, said the computation that transformative technologies rely on must also advance to maintain U.S. technological advantage.
“Together, MITRE and Oak Ridge’s objective and mission-focused technical expertise will ensure computational advances are developed and evaluated in the context of the complex systems and mission objectives where they will be deployed,” Peters added.
ORNL Director Stephen Streiffer pointed to the national lab’s leadership in scientific computing and emerging technologies, including AI and quantum, as positioning it to address complex challenges of national importance.
“By partnering with MITRE, we have an opportunity to unite complementary expertise, expand the reach of our innovations, and deliver novel solutions for the missions we serve,” Streiffer noted.
What Other Technology Initiatives Has MITRE Pursued?
The launch of JICSA adds to a series of technology efforts MITRE has undertaken this year. The organization opened its intellectual property portfolio to industry under the Department of War’s Defense Patent Holiday program to accelerate the transition of defense technologies to operational use. MITRE also partnered with The Weather Company to integrate high-resolution weather data into AI-driven forecasting tools through Weather 1K, a dataset MITRE developed with NVIDIA’s Earth-2 team.
In a LinkedIn post, Peters called for realigning science and technology institutions around national missions. He noted that federally funded research and development centers are positioned to link short-term technical fixes to long-term federal missions, and he recommended that the government expand shared testbeds, trusted data environments and access to specialized research infrastructure.
On the leadership front, MITRE promoted Glenn Daly to vice president of engineering and analysis, placing him at the helm of its new Center for Engineering and Analysis, which covers systems engineering, modeling and analysis, signals and electronics, and emerging technologies.
