Workshop Report on Rolling Next-Generation Secure Hardware into Standards | NIST IR 8615 Available

NIST announces the publication of NIST Internal Report (IR) 8615, Workshop on Rolling Next-Generation Secure Hardware into Standards, which documents the outcomes from the Sustainable Hardware Security (SUSHI@NIST) Workshop held on January 26, 2026. The workshop brought together stakeholders from industry, academia, and government to identify priorities and actionable approaches to strengthen hardware security across the semiconductor ecosystem.

The report highlights a growing consensus that next-generation hardware security requires a coordinated, evidence-based approach spanning the full life cycle, from silicon and intellectual property through manufacturing, deployment, operation, and end-of-life.

The participants identified five priority areas:

1. Unified standards and governance, including common terminology, interoperable trust models, tiered assurance approaches, and guidance for emerging technologies (e.g., chiplets, AI hardware, post-quantum computing)
2. Embedding security, provenance, and traceability throughout the semiconductor life cycle through mechanisms such as cryptographic identities, SBOMs, attestation, verification, and life cycle-aware access controls
3. Strong supply chain security (e.g., verifiable components) and economic incentives, such as procurement requirements, public-private partnerships, industry consortia, and pilot programs
4. Scalable verification and validation for continuous assurance, including AI-assisted analysis, formal methods, fuzzing, standardized testing, and resilience evaluation
5. Workforce development and collaboration across industry, academia, government, standards organizations, and research programs

Together, these recommendations provide a foundation for advancing interoperable, measurable, and sustainable hardware security practices across the semiconductor ecosystem.