AESi

AESi is an acronym that can refer to more than one concept, and there is no single, universally recognized definition. In cryptography discussions, AESi is sometimes used informally to denote an enhancement of the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) that emphasizes integrity or authentication, such as an authenticated encryption mode built on AES. However, there is no standard AESi specification recognized by major standards bodies, and such uses are not official substitutes for established AEAD schemes like AES-GCM or AES-CCM.

In hardware and processor documentation, AESi is occasionally used as shorthand for instructions or features related to AES (in some contexts rendered as AES-instructions, or AES-I), though the canonical Intel and ARM instruction sets use AES-NI and related names rather than "AESi." When appearing in vendor marketing or product datasheets, AESi generally refers to a product line or feature set that includes AES acceleration or secure key storage, but the exact meaning varies by vendor.

The term also has potential usage in domains outside cryptography, such as software libraries, where AESi may denote a module implementing AES with additional integrity checks, or as a project codename.

Because AESi lacks a single standardized definition, readers should rely on the specific context in which it appears to determine its precise meaning. Related topics include the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), authenticated encryption with associated data (AEAD), AES-NI, and hardware acceleration for cryptography.