U.S. Government Renews Mission for CMU's Software Engineering Institute

The institute—the only federally funded research and development center focused exclusively on advancing software for national security—is now entering its 41st year at CMU

PITTSBURGH, Pa., June 24, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The Department of Defense yesterday awarded a five-year contract renewal for the Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) Software Engineering Institute (SEI), which is now beginning its 41st year of supporting national security as a federally funded research and development center (FFRDC). This development ensures that the institute will continue to play a pivotal role in advancing and transitioning the science, technologies, and practices needed to make software a strategic advantage for the DoD.

The SEI, which is sponsored by the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (USD(R&E)), is the only FFRDC focusing specifically on AI- and software-related engineering and security.

"Carnegie Mellon University's operation of the Software Engineering Institute advances pivotal research and development that is deeply consequential to our national security and defense," said CMU President Farnam Jahanian. "We are honored to build on our partnership with the Department of Defense—which stretches back four decades and has positioned the SEI as a trusted national resource at the forefront of software, cybersecurity, and AI. Together, we will continue driving innovation, guiding defense strategy, and helping to secure the systems that power our economy, our security, and our way of life."

With its integral position at Carnegie Mellon University, one of the world's leading academic institutions for research and education in computer science and engineering, the SEI is uniquely suited to develop technologies and practices to solve difficult AI, software, and cybersecurity challenges in the nation's defense, critical infrastructure, and industry.

As part of CMU, the SEI has access to some of the world's greatest resources and researchers working at the forefront of emerging technologies. "The institute's R&D portfolio puts Carnegie Mellon squarely at the center of the nation's goal to maintain world leadership in the advancement and implementation of critical trustworthy AI and other emerging software innovations," said Theresa Mayer, CMU vice president for research.

Society faces enduring challenges as the need for software innovation and cybersecurity evolves and intensifies. Complex software systems require the highest levels of cybersecurity and now underpin the operations of the DoD, the Department of Homeland Security, other government agencies, and industry.

Grounded in the software technology transformations of the past, the SEI has created solutions for the transformations of today. The SEI contributed to the development of the Software Acquisition Pathway, which earlier this year the DoD adopted as its preferred pathway for all software development components. In late 2024, the Defense Department officially established the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC), co-created by the SEI, to secure the defense industrial base supply chain against cyber threats. The first-of-its-kind SEI AI Security Incident Response Team (AISIRT) is in its second year of identifying, analyzing, and responding to the threats, vulnerabilities, and incidents that emerge from advances in AI and machine learning. Since 2020, the SEI has led a national initiative in engineering AI for defense and national security sponsored by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. As part of its remit to transition industry technology to the DoD, SEI experts frequently collaborate with the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), which accelerates adoption of commercial and dual-use technology across the department. The SEI also works with acquisition programs to apply industry-best practices such as Agile and continuous deployment of capability, stand up software factories, and implement zero-trust architectures.

"To continue to make a difference for the DoD as the future unfolds means anticipating change and making it work to the DoD's advantage in its software ecosystem," said SEI Director and CEO Paul Nielsen. "Our history proves that we are always in position to provide key guidance on the next big thing in software technology in service to the nation."

The SEI was established in December 1984 and began work in early 1985. Since then, the institute has pursued research, development and demonstration, collaboration, and transition objectives that address pervasive and significant problems. This work helps organizations to acquire, develop, operate, and sustain software systems, and ensure these software systems are innovative, affordable, trustworthy, and enduring.

FFRDCs are unique nonprofit entities sponsored and funded by the U.S. government that address long-term problems of considerable complexity, analyze technical questions with a high degree of objectivity, and provide creative and cost-effective solutions to government problems.

About the Carnegie Mellon University Software Engineering Institute
Always focused on the future, the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) advances software as a strategic advantage for national security. We lead research and direct transition of software engineering, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence technologies at the intersection of academia, industry, and government. We serve the nation as a federally funded research and development center (FFRDC) sponsored by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) and are based at Carnegie Mellon University, a global research university annually rated among the best for its programs in computer science and engineering. For more information, visit the SEI website at https://www.sei.cmu.edu. 

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SOURCE Carnegie Mellon University Software Engineering Institute