NSF announces up to $35 million to stand up AI research resource operations center
The National Science Foundation plans to award up to $35 million to establish an operations center for its National AI Research Resource, signaling a step toward the pilot becoming a more permanent program.
Despite bipartisan support for the NAIRR, Congress has yet to authorize a full-scale version of the resource designed to democratize access to tools needed for AI research. The newly announced solicitation indicates the project is taking steps to scale the project absent additional support.
“The NAIRR Operating Center solicitation marks a key step in the transition from the NAIRR Pilot to building a sustainable and scalable NAIRR program,” Katie Antypas, who leads NSF’s Office of Advanced Cyberinfrastructure, said in a statement included in the announcement.
She added that NSF looks forward to collaborating with partners in the private sector and other agencies, “whose contributions have been critical in demonstrating the innovation and scientific impact that comes when critical AI resources are made accessible to research and education communities across the country.”
The NAIRR began as a pilot in January 2024 as a resource for researchers to access computational data, AI models, software, and other tools that are needed for AI research. Since then, the public-private partnership pilot has supported over 490 projects in 49 states and Washington, per its website, and is supported by contributions from 14 federal agencies and 28 private sector partners.
As the pilot has moved forward, lawmakers have attempted to advance bipartisan legislation that would codify the NAIRR, but those bills have not passed. Previous statements from science and tech officials during the Biden administration made the case that formalization would be important as establishing NAIRR fully was expected to take a significant amount of funding.
In response to a FedScoop question about funding for the center, an NSF spokesperson said it’s covered by the agency’s normal appropriations.
NAIRR has remained a priority even as the Trump administration has sought to make changes to NSF awards, canceling hundreds of grants that were related to things like diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and environmental justice. President Donald Trump’s AI Action Plan, for example, included a recommendation for the NAIRR to “build the foundations for a lean and sustainable NAIRR operations capability.”
According to the solicitation, NSF will make an award of a maximum of $35 million for a period of up to five years for the operations center project. That award will be made to a single organization. That awardee would ultimately be responsible for establishing a “community-based organization,” including tasks such as establishing the operation framework, working with stakeholders, and coordinating with the current pilot project functions.
The awardee would also be eligible to expand their responsibilities and duties at a later date, depending on factors such as NAIRR’s priorities, the awardee’s performance and funding.
