AI Meets Cybersecurity: A Workshop Brings Innovation to Life

Over the past few weeks, I had the incredible opportunity to design and lead three hands-on AI workshop sessions during the Day of Cyber at Norwich University’s Senator Patrick Leahy School of Cybersecurity and Advanced Computing.

As a Senior AI Fellow, I wanted these sessions to show students that artificial intelligence isn’t something distant or abstract — it’s something we can see, hear, and interact with in real time. After weeks of planning, coding, and testing, it was rewarding to watch that vision come to life.

Each workshop explored how AI and cybersecurity intersect through real-world, interactive projects. Students worked in small groups experimenting with an AI-powered voice assistant, a YOLO-based object detection system, a machine learning–driven drone, and a Raspberry Pi 5 intrusion detection system enhanced with AI. Watching their curiosity turn into excitement as they saw these systems think and react on their own was an unforgettable experience.

I’m deeply grateful to Dr. Ali Al Bataineh for believing in me and giving me the opportunity to represent the AI Center, and to Dr. Huw O.L. Read for creating such an engaging program and helping with every aspect of technical setup and coordination. Their mentorship and guidance truly made this day possible.

Through these workshops, my goal was simple: to inspire students to view AI not as a replacement for human intelligence, but as a partner for innovation — one that can help us solve problems, explore creativity, and strengthen cybersecurity in meaningful ways.

Leading these sessions reminded me why I’m passionate about this field — because when you bring AI out of theory and into people’s hands, you don’t just teach technology, you ignite imagination.