AI research by the National Science Foundation will expand to a broader range of businesses across the U.S. economy through five new NSF AI institutes being created at a cost of $100 million.

The new initiatives, which were unveiled Aug. 26 by the agency, will deepen the NSFs artificial intelligence research to expand the nations workforce and drive new possibilities for a wide range of businesses, educational institutions, medicine, banking and other organizations.

In a related announcement, two complementary AI research institutes are also being created by the U.S. Department of Agriculture over the next five years using $40 million in funding to expand AI research in farming and food processing.

The new AI institutes will emphasize use-inspired research to help businesses and organizations, said James Donlon, program director for information and intelligent systems in the NSFs directorate for computer and information science and engineering (CISE) division.

Were trying to tackle some of the grand challenges that we see in these different sectors of the economy to advance AI and a wide range of industries, said Donlon. It is what we hope to fuel, to understand AI more and to make a big impact.

The new institutes are organizing and creating implementation teams immediately, he said. They are champing at the bit to get going and onto their research.

The institutes will start their work as early as September through November.

One of the things Im really pleased to see, true to the goals of the program, is that each one of the institutes includes not only the promise to advance AI but also bold advances to help create this future AI workforce that well need to be competitive, said Donlon.

The efforts will create new collaborations and a network of AI research to expand these efforts, he added.

The new NSF AI institutes are:

Led by NSF, the AI initiatives are being conducted in partnership with the U.S.D.A.s National Institute of Food and Agriculture, the U.S. Department of Homeland's Security Science and Technology Directorate, and the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration, according to the NSF. The institutes will serve as nodes in a broader nationwide network that will pursue transformational advances in sectors of societal impact, from extreme weather preparedness to K-12 education.

The new U.S.D.A. AI institutes are:

Erwin Gianchandani, deputy assistant director for the NSFs directorate for computer and information science and engineering (CISE) division, said the newly-funded institutes have their roots in NSF-funded research going back many decades.

Were trying to unleash the potential and bringing together data and advanced computing capabilities, said Gianchandani.

A wide range of other organizations will also be involved in the AI research initiatives, including minority colleges and universities, companies, states and others, he said. The first programs will involve research in about 20 U.S. states.

This is really about a coalition of the willing coming together in a meaningful way, said Gianchandani. It is a first installment, a first round of institutes we are funding now.

Another funding round could come a year from now to further expand the program across the nation, he said.

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Fueling AI to Grow the Economy Is Goal of 5 New NSF AI Institutes - EnterpriseAI