Software Engineering Institute (Carnegie Mellon University)

The Software Engineering Institute, or SEI, is a research centre based at Carnegie Mellon University in the United States. It works on software engineering, cybersecurity and artificial intelligence for national security.

The U.S. Department of War (DoW) founded the SEI in 1984. It is a federally funded research and development centre. The SEI says this status keeps it free from commercial interest, so it can act as a trusted partner. It has about four decades of experience meeting DoW software needs.

The SEI began as a response to a clear need. In the 1980s, the DoW saw that software could power new abilities and more flexible mission systems. The SEI now does applied research and engineering, builds and tests new technology, and moves proven results into real use.

Its work falls into four areas. The first is software engineering, which aims to make software-enabled systems affordable, trustworthy and responsive to mission needs. The second is AI engineering, which helps the DoW build AI systems that are reliable. The third is cybersecurity, which protects critical U.S. systems. The fourth is acquisition transformation, which helps the DoW get needed capabilities on time.

One focus is continuous deployment of capability. This covers DevSecOps, a way to deliver secure software faster. The SEI began DevSecOps research in 2012. In 2015, it became the first such research centre to apply these methods at the DoW. It also launched a DevSecOps course at Carnegie Mellon University, which is now taught every semester. The SEI has helped universities in Germany, Spain, Portugal, Rwanda, Turkey, India and other countries build their own courses.

The SEI also builds courses and learning platforms that tens of thousands of service members have used. It offers training, mentoring and engineering support to organisations that want to start or improve their methods. Its staff work with academia, government and industry, and some hold leadership roles in groups such as IEEE, ACM, INCOSE and FIRST.

Services

• Software engineering research
• AI engineering
• Cybersecurity research
• Acquisition transformation
• DevSecOps
• Training and courses
• Mentoring
• Engineering support