U.S. launches 2-year AI competition to reduce cybersecurity risks

The U.S. government on Wednesday launched a two-year open competition in a bid to harness the power of artificial intelligence to improve critical software and better protect against cybersecurity threats.

The administration of President Joe Biden said the competition featuring nearly $20 million in prizes will involve collaboration with top AI companies, such as Google LLC, Microsoft Corp. and OpenAI.

Led by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, the initiative dubbed the “AI Cyber Challenge” is aimed at creating new technologies to bolster the security of computer code, with teams of...