NIST to Launch Open Competition for a New Manufacturing USA Institute for AI

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), under the U.S. Department of Commerce, is set to unveil an open competition for a new Manufacturing USA institute. This institute will be dedicated to harnessing artificial intelligence (AI) to bolster the resilience of American manufacturing.

NIST envisions a federal investment of $70 million over a span of five years for this initiative, complemented by an equivalent or larger contribution from private and other non-federal funding channels.

The new institute will serve as a fresh addition to this network, concentrating on undertaking research and development projects, forging employer-led sectoral collaborations to formulate training resources, and crafting pathways for the workforce to transition innovation into industrial application.

“This new Manufacturing USA AI-focused institute will build on the Biden-Harris administration’s extensive work to revitalize American manufacturing, invest in innovation, and ensure American workers are ready to meet the challenges of the future,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo.

Earlier, NIST published a Notice of Intent (NOI) in the Federal Register to provide potential applicants with ample time to develop meaningful collaborations among industry, academia, federal laboratories, and state and local government agencies.

Last month, NIST signed an agreement with the non-profit Engineering Biology Research Consortium (EBRC) to develop tools to protect against the misuse of AI.

NIST entered a two-year cooperative research agreement to construct safety measures against AI-driven nucleic acid synthesis, a field in synthetic biology harboring both promise and peril.

This collaboration, prompted by a task in the recent Executive Order on Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence, mandates NIST, among other agencies, to establish standards, best practices, and implementation guidelines for nucleic acid synthesis in light of AI advancements.