A White House official said the challenges are a "direct call to action” to private-sector partners, researchers and other innovators.

The agency is continuing to deepen its collaboration with industry as it works to advance technical priorities amid a tight schedule and forthcoming deadlines.

An agency official says challenges are coming into focus as NSF positions itself as a “collaborative” and “complementary” player in the Energy Department-led Genesis Mission.

The initial phase is designed to validate core AI concepts and will inform the design of the broader initiative, a spokesperson told FedScoop.

Execution is underway as forthcoming deadlines, such as developing a cybersecurity strategy and demonstrating initial platform capabilities, creep up.

Expect many improvements across public-sector tech this year, a former Clinton and Bush cybersecurity expert writes.

In the nation's race to lead in AI, there is a gap between policy vision and operational reality.

OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Microsoft and AWS are among the private industry collaborators that have committed to advancing the Trump administration’s AI goals.

“We just have to act like our life depends on it,” Under Secretary for Science Darío Gil said during a House hearing Wednesday.

The $28 million-plus investment will go toward projects that leverage machine learning, data sharing, AI infrastructure and more.