Today, the U.S. and UK governments have announced the winners of the first phase of the U.S.-UK privacy-enhancing technologies (PETs) prize challenges. Innovators on both sides of the Atlantic are participating across two challenge tracks – using PETs to improve detection of financial crime and forecasting an individual’s risk of infection during a pandemic – or designing a solution that would meet both scenarios.
The 12 prize-winning technical papers, selected from 76 entries, set out state-of-the-art approaches to privacy-preserving federated learning, winning a total of $157,000 (£138,000) in prizes. They reflect the breadth and depth of technical talent in both nations and include teams from academic institutions, global technology companies, and privacy start-ups.
The second phase of the challenges, which began earlier this month, will see participating teams build the solutions envisioned in their technical papers. They will also have opportunities to engage with regulators and government agencies, to inform the development of solutions that uphold crucial regulatory principles. Innovators in the second phase will compete for prizes worth a combined $915,000 (£803,000).