Opportunity Information: Apply for DARPA BAA10 81
Apply for DARPA BAA10 81
- The DARPA Transformational Convergence Technology in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "PROgramming Computation on EncryptEd Data" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 12.910 Research and Technology Development.
- This funding opportunity was created on Jul 8, 2010 and posted on Jul 6, 2010.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Aug 24, 2010. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.
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Opportunity Summary:
PROgramming Computation on EncryptEd Data (PROCEED) is a DARPA research grant opportunity focused on making it realistic to run useful computations directly on encrypted information without ever decrypting it, while also creating modern programming languages and tooling that let developers describe those encrypted computations in a more natural, reliable way. The core idea is to keep sensitive data confidential even while it is being processed, which is especially relevant for scenarios like outsourced computation, cloud services, and cross-organization analytics where data owners do not want to expose raw inputs to the computing environment. DARPA frames this as a broad, end-to-end effort that spans new cryptographic math, practical implementations, algorithms tuned for the encrypted setting, and developer-facing programming language support, with the goal of moving computation-on-encrypted-data techniques from largely academic demonstrations into something that can be engineered and evaluated.
The first major thrust targets the mathematical foundations of fully homomorphic encryption (FHE), which enables noninteractive computation on encrypted data. In a noninteractive model, one party can encrypt data and hand it to another party to compute on, and the computing party can produce an encrypted result without needing to talk back and forth during the computation. PROCEED emphasizes that achieving efficiency here requires discovery and development of new mathematical underpinnings, pointing to early FHE work (for example, Gentry and others) as representative of the direction. The notice also clarifies that work specifically in this area is aligned with a related solicitation (RA 10-80), and encourages proposers interested in that slice of the problem to refer to that associated call.
A second thrust focuses on the mathematical foundations of secure multiparty computation (MPC), which addresses computation on encrypted or secret-shared data in an interactive setting. Unlike FHE, MPC typically involves multiple parties jointly computing a function over their private inputs while revealing only the output, with protocol steps requiring interaction among participants. DARPA notes that MPC has a long history (referencing classic and later work), but still needs major improvements in efficiency and practicality before it can be widely deployed for real workloads and real operational constraints. This part of the program is essentially about new protocol ideas, new security reductions, and new constructions that reduce communication costs, round complexity, and computational overhead while maintaining strong security guarantees.
The third thrust is about supporting security technologies beyond confidentiality. PROCEED explicitly recognizes that encrypting data and computing on it can protect secrecy, but it does not automatically guarantee that the computation was performed correctly (integrity), that the program itself is protected from inspection or tampering, or that other desirable security properties hold. This opens the door to research into complementary mechanisms such as verifiable computation, integrity protections, techniques for safeguarding algorithms or code, and other cryptographic or systems approaches that strengthen the overall trustworthiness of an encrypted-computation pipeline. The emphasis is on filling the gaps that would otherwise prevent encrypted computation from being used in high-assurance environments.
The fourth thrust concentrates on implementation, measurement, and optimization, highlighting that practical performance will depend heavily on highly tuned software and potentially programmable hardware acceleration. DARPA points out that optimized cryptographic implementations can be an order of magnitude faster than naive ones, which is especially important because FHE and MPC have historically been expensive. This thrust is therefore about turning theoretical constructions into high-performance libraries and toolchains, building benchmarks and measurement methodologies, and exploring acceleration paths (for example, custom or programmable hardware) that can make encrypted-domain computation feasible for larger problem sizes and tighter latency budgets.
The fifth thrust targets algorithms and data structures designed specifically for the encrypted domain. Many current methods for computing on encrypted data effectively compile programs into circuits with fixed bounds on input size, and performance is closely tied to circuit characteristics. PROCEED highlights circuit depth as a key optimization objective because deeper circuits tend to be far more expensive under many encrypted-computation schemes. Importantly, minimizing circuit depth is traditionally a hardware-design mindset rather than a typical software-development one, so this research area calls for new algorithm libraries, representations, and optimization techniques that let developers express computations while the system transforms them into efficient encrypted-domain forms. In practice, this could mean rethinking common operations (search, aggregation, machine learning primitives, database-style queries) so they map efficiently to the constraints imposed by FHE or MPC.
The sixth thrust is programming languages, with an emphasis on more advanced languages and type systems that embed cryptographic knowledge and constraints. The stated goal is to make programming encrypted computations feel closer to ordinary programming, rather than requiring specialists to handcraft circuits or reason constantly about cryptographic limitations. DARPA contrasts the desired state with then-current languages such as those used in systems like FairPlay, describing them as simple imperative languages with little type-system support for cryptography. The intent here is that languages, compilers, and static analyses should help programmers avoid mistakes, select appropriate cryptographic protocols, and generate efficient implementations automatically, much like modern compilers do for conventional performance and correctness.
PROCEED also assigns a research integrator role within the program to define a common cryptographic application programming interface (API). This is meant to ensure that compilers, language tools, and cryptographic implementations are interoperable, rather than being isolated prototypes that cannot be combined. The integrator is also intended to support the government evaluation team, which signals that DARPA expects measurable progress and comparable demonstrations across teams, not just theoretical results. In other words, the program is structured to encourage an ecosystem where languages, compilers, libraries, and optimized crypto backends can plug into one another and be evaluated consistently.
Administratively, the opportunity is identified as DARPA BAA10-81 under DARPA's Transformational Convergence Technology area, categorized as discretionary funding, and allows multiple instrument types including cooperative agreements, grants, other procurement contracts. There is no cost-sharing requirement stated. The eligibility is listed as unrestricted, meaning it is broadly open to many types of entities unless further limited by additional eligibility text in the full announcement. The posting date is July 6, 2010, with an original and current closing date of August 24, 2010, and an archive date of January 3, 2011. Award floor and ceiling are both listed as 0 in the summary record, which typically means the public listing does not specify those values and the full announcement would contain any practical guidance. A point of contact is provided (Drew Dean at DARPA) for access issues related to the full announcement.
FAQs: DARPA PROCEED (BAA10-81) - PROgramming Computation on EncryptEd Data
1) What is the PROCEED program?
PROgramming Computation on EncryptEd Data (PROCEED) is a DARPA research grant opportunity aimed at making it realistic to run useful computations directly on encrypted data without decrypting it, and to build modern programming languages and tools that let developers describe those encrypted computations in a natural and reliable way.
2) What problem is PROCEED trying to solve?
The program targets a core security and usability challenge: enabling computation on sensitive data while keeping the raw inputs confidential throughout processing. This is especially relevant when computation is outsourced (for example, to cloud services) or when analytics span multiple organizations that do not want to expose their private data to one another or to the computing environment.
3) What does "computation on encrypted data without decrypting it" mean in this context?
It means a party can encrypt information and have another party run computations on that encrypted information in a way that never reveals the underlying plaintext to the computing environment. The output remains encrypted, and only an authorized party can decrypt the final result.
4) How does DARPA describe the scope of work for PROCEED?
DARPA frames PROCEED as an end-to-end research effort spanning new cryptographic mathematics, practical implementations, encrypted-domain algorithms, and developer-facing programming languages and tooling. The intent is to move computation-on-encrypted-data techniques from largely academic demonstrations into approaches that can be engineered, integrated, and evaluated.
5) What are the main research thrusts in PROCEED?
PROCEED describes six major thrusts:
- Mathematical foundations of fully homomorphic encryption (FHE)
- Mathematical foundations of secure multiparty computation (MPC)
- Security technologies beyond confidentiality (for example, integrity and verifiability)
- Implementation, measurement, and optimization (including possible hardware acceleration)
- Algorithms and data structures designed for the encrypted domain (for example, circuit-depth-aware approaches)
- Programming languages and type systems for encrypted computation
6) What is the difference between FHE and MPC as described here?
PROCEED distinguishes them primarily by interaction model:
- FHE enables noninteractive computation on encrypted data: one party encrypts data, another computes on it, and returns an encrypted result without back-and-forth interaction during the computation.
- MPC is typically interactive: multiple parties jointly compute a function over private inputs through protocol steps that require communication among the participants, revealing only the output.
7) What is the first thrust about (FHE foundations)?
The first thrust emphasizes new mathematical underpinnings for fully homomorphic encryption to make noninteractive computation on encrypted data efficient and practical. DARPA points to early work (such as Gentry and others) as representative of the direction and stresses that efficiency improvements likely require discovering and developing new foundations.
8) Is there a related solicitation specifically for FHE foundations?
Yes. The notice states that work specifically aligned with the FHE-mathematical-foundations area is aligned with a related solicitation identified as RA 10-80, and it encourages proposers interested in that slice to refer to that associated call.
9) What is the second thrust about (MPC foundations)?
The second thrust focuses on improving secure multiparty computation so it becomes efficient and practical for real workloads and operational constraints. DARPA highlights needs such as new protocol ideas, new security reductions, and new constructions that reduce communication costs, reduce the number of interaction rounds, and lower computation overhead while keeping strong security guarantees.
10) What does PROCEED mean by "security beyond confidentiality"?
PROCEED notes that confidentiality alone (keeping data secret) does not automatically ensure that the computation was performed correctly (integrity), that programs are protected from inspection or tampering, or that other security properties are satisfied. This thrust invites complementary mechanisms such as verifiable computation, integrity protections, and approaches that safeguard algorithms or code, to increase overall trust in encrypted-computation pipelines.
11) Why does PROCEED emphasize implementation, measurement, and optimization?
DARPA highlights that practical encrypted computation depends heavily on highly optimized software and possibly programmable hardware acceleration. The notice notes that tuned cryptographic implementations can be an order of magnitude faster than naive implementations, which matters because FHE and MPC have historically been computationally expensive. This thrust includes building high-performance libraries and toolchains, developing benchmarks, and creating measurement methodologies.
12) What kinds of performance improvements does DARPA suggest may be possible?
The notice states that optimized cryptographic implementations can be about an order of magnitude faster than naive ones, and it points to both software tuning and exploration of programmable or custom hardware acceleration as potential paths to feasibility for larger workloads and lower latency budgets.
13) What is the "algorithms and data structures for the encrypted domain" thrust about?
This thrust focuses on rethinking algorithms so they map efficiently to encrypted-computation constraints. PROCEED notes that many approaches compile programs into circuits with fixed bounds on input size, and performance can be strongly tied to circuit characteristics. Circuit depth is highlighted as a key optimization objective because deeper circuits tend to be much more expensive under many encrypted-computation schemes.
14) Why does circuit depth matter in PROCEED?
According to the notice, circuit depth is a major driver of cost in many encrypted-computation schemes. PROCEED points out that minimizing circuit depth is more typical of hardware-design thinking than everyday software development, which motivates research into libraries, representations, and optimization techniques that can transform developer intent into efficient encrypted-domain forms.
15) What kinds of application-style operations does PROCEED suggest may need to be rethought for encrypted computation?
The notice gives examples of common computation patterns that may need new encrypted-domain-friendly approaches, such as search, aggregation, machine learning primitives, and database-style queries, so they can map efficiently to FHE or MPC constraints.
16) What is the programming languages thrust trying to achieve?
This thrust aims to make programming encrypted computations feel closer to ordinary programming, rather than forcing developers to handcraft circuits or constantly reason about cryptographic limitations. DARPA emphasizes advanced languages, compilers, and type systems that embed cryptographic knowledge and constraints to help avoid mistakes, select appropriate protocols, and generate efficient implementations automatically.
17) How does PROCEED characterize then-current encrypted-computation languages?
The notice contrasts the desired approach with languages such as those used in systems like FairPlay, describing them as simple imperative languages with little type-system support for cryptography. PROCEED seeks more modern language features and static analyses suited to the encrypted setting.
18) What is the role of the research integrator in PROCEED?
PROCEED assigns a research integrator role to define a common cryptographic application programming interface (API). The intent is to ensure interoperability among compilers, language tools, and cryptographic implementations, avoiding isolated prototypes that cannot be combined.
19) How does the common API relate to evaluation?
The notice indicates the integrator is also intended to support the government evaluation team. This signals an emphasis on measurable progress and comparable demonstrations across teams, with consistent integration points so multiple components (languages, compilers, libraries, crypto backends) can plug into one another and be evaluated in a consistent manner.
20) What is the official identifier for this opportunity?
The opportunity is identified as DARPA BAA10-81 under DARPA's Transformational Convergence Technology area.
21) What type of funding instrument(s) are allowed?
The summary states that multiple instrument types are allowed, including cooperative agreements, grants, and other procurement contracts.
22) Is cost sharing required?
No cost-sharing requirement is stated in the provided summary information.
23) Who is eligible to apply?
Eligibility is listed as unrestricted in the provided information, meaning it is broadly open unless the full announcement includes additional limits or clarifications.
24) What are the key dates listed for this opportunity?
- Posting date: July 6, 2010
- Closing date (original and current): August 24, 2010
- Archive date: January 3, 2011
25) Does the listing specify a minimum or maximum award amount?
The award floor and ceiling are both listed as 0 in the summary record. This typically indicates that the public listing does not specify those values, and that any practical guidance may appear in the full announcement.
26) What should applicants do if they cannot access the full announcement?
A point of contact is provided for access issues related to the full announcement: Drew Dean at DARPA.
27) What kinds of deliverables or outcomes does DARPA appear to want from PROCEED?
Based on the description, DARPA is aiming for approaches that can be engineered and evaluated, including interoperable components (languages, compilers, libraries, and optimized cryptographic backends), practical implementations with benchmarking and measurement, and progress that can be compared across teams through common interfaces and evaluation support.
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