Author: Eric,
Chief Engineer
Ten minute read
I attended ESCAR USA 2026 in Novi, Michigan, located just outside Detroit, on May 19–21, and it was a great opportunity to connect with OEMs, automotive suppliers, DOT, NHTSA, DHS and a whole range of industry partners. The major theme of the week was cybersecurity across the automotive and transportation world, and there was no shortage of insightful conversations.
My goal going in was to get a clearer picture of where AIS and our technology portfolio fit into this fast‑moving landscape of “computers and networks on wheels.” The two‑day event offered a broad look at the industry’s current mindset around cybersecurity, the challenges ahead and the proactive steps being taken to keep drivers safe while still meeting regulatory requirements and delivering the connected, feature‑rich experience people expect on the road.
Having attended this conference for years and supported the program committee through topic reviews, returning to ESCAR feels like stepping back into a familiar yet constantly evolving landscape.
For me, this year’s event was an opportunity to reconnect with colleagues, hear new research perspectives and compare AIS’s technology portfolio against the challenges OEMs and suppliers face today. It also served as a valuable moment to reassess where AIS can make the strongest impact as the industry accelerates toward a more connected and regulated future.
Conversations and Engagement Highlights
Some of the most valuable insights came from conversations outside the formal sessions. A particularly engaging discussion with a major federal transportation research organization focused on EV charging interoperability and how edge-based separation and trust boundary strategies could help manage data flows. The topic closely aligned with capabilities found in AIS technologies such as Beam® and NXG, highlighting promising areas for joint work.
A long-standing connection with a university research group specializing in network-scale sensing and correlation also led to discussions around piloting AIS technologies. Their high-throughput research environments are a strong fit for Canarix and Metasponse, providing valuable insights to activity on the university network and a great source for real world sample data for AIS.
Multiple OEMs also expressed growing needs for penetration testing, security assessments and more resilient diagnostic systems, aligning closely with AIS’s expertise and highlighted areas where we can help organizations strengthen the security and resilience of their platforms.
What We Learned from ESCAR USA 2026
One theme surfaced throughout nearly every session and hallway conversation: the threat landscape continues to evolve rapidly, driving OEMs and suppliers to strengthen their cybersecurity posture. The conference reinforced both the scale of this challenge and the urgency behind it.
EV charging and AI shaped much of the technical discussion across academic and industry sessions. Presenters emphasized the need for trust, regulatory alignment and greater attention to the hardware and transport layers beneath applications. Researchers backed these concerns with real attack demonstrations and assessments showing how vulnerabilities can impact vehicles, logistics systems and supporting infrastructure.
Regulation was another dominant topic. Regulatory bodies in the U.S. and abroad are moving beyond security standards toward enforceable expectations that require organizations to demonstrate cybersecurity throughout development and sustainment processes. This raises the bar not only for technology, but for the discipline and processes behind it.
Looking Forward
By the end of the conference, a clear picture emerged: hardware, charging infrastructure, diagnostics, APIs, cloud platforms and AI are no longer separate domains. They are interconnected systems whose relationships and lifecycles must be secured as carefully as the individual components themselves.
ESCAR USA 2026 reinforced a message that continues to grow stronger each year: cybersecurity is no longer about protecting isolated components, but securing entire ecosystems that span embedded systems, edge devices, cloud environments, APIs and high-volume data flows.
As the industry moves quickly and faces increasing regulatory pressure, AIS is well positioned to help organizations navigate this evolving landscape. Conferences like ESCAR help ensure we remain aligned with the challenges, priorities and realities of the mobility cybersecurity community.
