Abstract
“Information is central to everything we do – it is the basis of intelligence, a fundamental element of command and control, and the foundation for communicating thoughts, opinions, and ideas.” This statement by Lieutenant General Milford H. Beagle, Jr., Commanding General of the U.S. Army Combined Arms Center, highlights the significance of the information dimension in the modern operational environment, and the urgent need for U.S. forces to train to conduct information operations, to be able to effectively use and protect information, exploit information advantages, and employ cyber non-kinetic effects against peer adversaries.
To address this need, the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command – Soldier Center has partnered with industry, academia, and government agencies to create the Information Environment for Simulation and Training (INFEST) capability. INFEST has Joint, Active Army, National Guard, and Reserve stakeholders, and is relevant to our international allies. Initial front-end analysis revealed the keys to enabling this training include representing a dynamic information environment, non-kinetic effects, and will-to-fight in Army Modeling and Simulation (M&S) systems. INFEST, a working capability, has integrated synthetic populations, large language models, an internet emulator, and a cyber framework using the Army’s Synthetic Training Environment simulation. INFEST will enable warfighters to train information advantage and cyber activities in a multidomain operations environment.
The paper will start with a summary of the market research and warfighter interviews that underpin INFEST. Next is an overview of the use cases that drive the development which is followed by a description of the technical approach. Then it will provide examples of bi-directional cause and effect traceability between physical environment events, the information environment, and cyber non-kinetic effects. The paper will close with a discussion of how INFEST will optimize training, enhance training readiness, expected impacts, and the way ahead.
