DSU Research Featured in International Springer Volume on Quantum AI Security

June 18, 2026

Research led by Dakota State University faculty member Dr. Varghese Vaidyan has been selected for inclusion in a new book, published by Springer, focused on the emerging field of quantum artificial intelligence security.

Vaidyan and his collaborators authored chapter four of the book, "Quantum Adversarial Machine Learning and Defense Strategies: Challenges and Opportunities," in the newly published volume titled Quantum Robustness in Artificial Intelligence. The chapter examines how artificial intelligence systems can be protected against adversarial attacks in future quantum computing environments and proposes design principles for building more secure and trustworthy quantum-enabled AI systems.

"Quantum computers are poised to take adversarial attacks to a level that classical defenses simply cannot anticipate. They will run more sophisticated optimization algorithms to find and exploit vulnerabilities in ways we have not seen before," said Vaidyan. "Our team's work establishes three concrete design principles - post-quantum cryptography, quantum-resistant neural network architectures, and transparent and accountable deployment - that give researchers and practitioners an actionable framework for building machine learning systems that can withstand that threat."

The invitation to contribute came from Dr. Mohammad Usman, editor of the volume and a leading international researcher in quantum technologies. Dr. Usman serves as Head of Quantum Systems at Australia's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) Data61 and is a professor at the University of Melbourne in Australia.

The invitation followed publication of the team's previous work in quantum artificial intelligence and security, highlighting growing recognition of research being conducted at Dakota State University and the Beacom College of Computer and Cyber Sciences.

"This invitation reflects the quality and relevance of the work being conducted by our researchers and students in quantum computing, artificial intelligence, and cybersecurity," said Dr. Ashley Podhradsky, Vice President for Research and Economic Development at DSU. "Recognition from internationally respected leaders in quantum research demonstrates the impact DSU is making in areas that will help shape the future of technology and national security."

The chapter was authored by Eric Yocam, a 2026 graduate of DSU's Cyber Operations program, Anthony Rizi, Mahesh Kamepalli, Varghese Vaidyan, Yong Wang, a former DSU faculty member, and Gurcan Comert. Their work explores emerging threats to quantum machine learning systems and outlines strategies for developing resilient AI models capable of withstanding adversarial attacks.

The book brings together contributions from researchers around the world examining the security, robustness, and reliability of quantum machine learning systems. According to Springer, the volume provides a comprehensive overview of the rapidly developing field of quantum adversarial artificial intelligence and its applications in security-sensitive environments.

The recognition comes amid a productive period of scholarly activity for Vaidyan's research team. Over the past year, the group has published research spanning quantum-resistant cybersecurity, transportation security, explainable artificial intelligence, digital forensics, advanced driver assistance systems, and quantum-classical computing applications. The team also collaborated with researchers from Savannah River National Laboratory, a U.S. Department of Energy national laboratory, applying quantum AI expertise to the evaluation of scientific data and resulting in a peer-reviewed publication.

Additional recent publications include:

• Research in IEEE Access on hybrid quantum-classical approaches for methane detection and remote sensing applications (Anjana Rajendra Prasad, Nathaniel Ketema, Eric Yocam, Varghese Vaidyan, Gurcan Comert, David Werth, Robert Buckley, Milinda Rambel Stone, Baby Vennela Kothakonda; IEEE Access, vol. 14)
• A quantum-resistant selective encryption framework designed for resource-constrained agricultural sensors. (Akshay Kappala, Eric Yocam, Nikil Kayastha, Sai Ram Vodnala, Varghese Vaidyan, Gurcan Comert, Yong Wang; IEEE Access, vol. 14)
• Security research examining vulnerabilities and countermeasures in automatic dependent surveillance systems. (Andrew Morrow, Varghese Vaidyan; Journal of Transportation Security 18, Springer)
• Machine learning research focused on adversarial robustness and explainable AI for image classification. (Chunheng Zhao, Pierluigi Pisu, Gurcan Comert, Negash Begashaw, Varghese Vaidyan, Nina Hubig; Machine Learning 114, Springer)
• Explainable AI applications for improving advanced driver assistance systems through driver eye-tracking analysis. (Methusela Sulle, Gurcan Comert, Kamrul Islam, Jun Deng, Negash Begashaw, Varghese Vaidyan ; Digital Engineering; Elsevier)
• Digital forensics research evaluating AI confidence methods and standards. (Milinda Rambel Stone and Varghese Vaidyan; 2026 14^th International Symposium on Digital Forensics and Security; IEEE)

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