DARPA: ~$6.9M for the "science of AI" for open-world novelty (SAIL-ON) — a federal contract to Charles River Analytics (USAspending)
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) funded SAIL-ON, a program researching the scientific principles and methods for AI that can adapt to unexpected, novel situations ("open-world novelty"). Recipient: Charles River Analytics, Inc.; value ~$6.9M ($6,872,926).
Contract key facts
- RecipientCHARLES RIVER ANALYTICS, INC.
- Contract value$6,872,926 (≈$6.9M)
- Awarding agencyDepartment of Defense
- Awarding sub-agencyDefense Advanced Research Projects Agency
- Award typeDEFINITIVE CONTRACT
- Period of performance2019-11-15 〜 2023-05-17
- Contract ID (PIID)HR001120C0042
Contract scope (original)
SCIENCE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND LEARNING FOR OPEN-WORLD NOVELTY (SAIL-ON) A DEFENSE ADVANCED RESEARCH PROJECTS AGENCY PROGRAM.
Key points
- DARPA funds the "science of AI" for open-world novelty (SAIL-ON)
- Researches principles, engineering techniques, and algorithms for AI that detects and adapts to unforeseen situations
- Recipient: Charles River Analytics, Inc.; definitive contract; November 2019 – May 2023
- Value ~$6.9M ($6,872,926) — DARPA leading U.S. cutting-edge AI research
SAIL-ON (Science of Artificial Intelligence and Learning for Open-World Novelty) is intended to research and develop the underlying scientific principles, general engineering techniques, and algorithms needed to create AI systems. The real world presents unexpected situations an AI did not learn during training (open-world novelty); SAIL-ON seeks to build the "science" of AI that can detect and adapt to such novelty — characteristically foundational, high-risk DARPA research.
Why it matters: it illustrates DARPA's leading role in U.S. cutting-edge AI research. The program's further technical details are beyond this spending data, so we do not assert them; refer to DARPA and other primary sources.
Why it matters
A case of public funding for AI's core challenge of adapting to unforeseen situations (robustness/generalization). For those tracking AI robustness, out-of-distribution detection, and continual learning, a useful read on the direction of U.S. (DARPA) cutting-edge AI investment.
FAQ
What is "open-world novelty"?
Sources (primary)
This article is an independent organization based on the U.S. official spending data below. Verify the exact, latest details with the official source.
- USAspending (award details)
- Contract ID (PIID)：HR001120C0042