Microsoft Unveils Project Ire: AI Agent That Autonomously Reverse Engineers Malware

Microsoft has unveiled a new AI agent named Project Ire, capable of autonomously classifying malware at a global scale with remarkable precision. Announced during Black Hat USA 2025, Project Ire can fully reverse engineer software files without any prior knowledge of their origin or purpose. It leverages decompilers and other analysis tools to examine the software’s output and determine whether it is malicious or benign. The system integrates advanced language models with a suite of callable reverse engineering and binary analysis tools to conduct investigations and make adjudications. The prototype has demonstrated strong efficacy in tests, including a real-world scenario involving approximately 4,000 "hard-target" files that automated systems had failed to classify. According to a Microsoft blog post dated August 5, Project Ire has achieved a precision of 0.98 and a recall of 0.83 using public datasets of Windows drivers.

"It was the first reverse engineer at Microsoft, human or machine, to author a conviction case – a detection strong enough to justify automatic blocking – for a specific advanced persistent threat (APT) malware sample, which has since been identified and blocked by Microsoft Defender," the Project Ire researchers wrote.

Project Ire also employs a validator tool that cross-checks its initial findings. This validator draws on expert statements from malware reverse engineers on the Project Ire team. Using this evidence alongside its internal model, the system generates a final report classifying the sample as malicious or benign. The development of Project Ire involved collaboration among various Microsoft teams, combining security expertise, operational knowledge, global malware telemetry, and AI research.

Project Ire Available to Microsoft Customers

Following successful preliminary testing, Microsoft plans to integrate the Project Ire prototype within its Defender organization as a binary analyzer for threat detection and software classification.

"Our goal is to scale the system’s speed and accuracy so that it can correctly classify files from any source, even on first encounter. Ultimately, our vision is to detect novel malware directly in memory, at scale," the researchers noted.

The agent aims to alleviate burnout and alert fatigue experienced by security analysts. Traditional AI malware analysis tools often fail to clearly indicate whether a sample is malicious or benign, forcing analysts to investigate each sample incrementally.

Source attribution: Originally published at Infosecurity Magazine on Thu, 07 Aug 2025.

FAQ

What is Project Ire?

Project Ire is an AI agent developed by Microsoft designed to autonomously reverse engineer and classify malware at scale.

How does Project Ire work?

Project Ire uses advanced language models combined with reverse engineering and binary analysis tools. It examines software files to determine if they are malicious or benign.

What kind of results has Project Ire shown?

In tests with public datasets of Windows drivers, Project Ire achieved a precision of 0.98 and a recall of 0.83. It was also successful in identifying and blocking a specific APT malware sample.

What is the goal of integrating Project Ire into Microsoft Defender?

The goal is to enhance threat detection and software classification by using Project Ire as a binary analyzer, aiming to scale speed and accuracy for classifying files, even those encountered for the first time.

How will Project Ire help security analysts?

Project Ire aims to reduce burnout and alert fatigue among security analysts by automating the classification of malware, which often requires manual investigation with traditional tools.

Crypto Market AI's Take

Microsoft's development of Project Ire highlights the growing trend of leveraging AI for cybersecurity. This advancement in autonomous malware analysis is particularly relevant in the current digital landscape, where sophisticated threats are constantly evolving. At AI Crypto Market, we are also deeply invested in the power of AI to enhance security and efficiency, particularly within the cryptocurrency space. Our platform utilizes advanced AI agents for market analysis and trading, demonstrating how AI can be applied to complex, fast-paced environments. Understanding how AI can detect and neutralize threats like malware, as Project Ire does, aligns with our commitment to secure and intelligent financial operations.

#BHUSA: Microsoft Debuts AI Agent Able to Reverse Engineer Malware