US Announces Funding for Emerging Tech R&D Amid Competition With China

The Trump administration is granting $1 billion to create 12 new research and development institutes to study emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence and quantum information science. The funding -- announced by the White House, the National Science Foundation and the Department of Energy -- includes $140 million over five years to seven NSF-led research institutes at U.S. universities, the White House said Aug. 26. The Energy Department will grant up to $625 million over five years to five national laboratories for the QIS centers, with $300 million in funding for them coming from universities and the private sector.

The grants will provide more resources for QIS centers to focus on advanced technologies, including quantum networking, sensing, computing and materials manufacturing, the White House said. The announcement comes as the U.S. seeks to maintain technological leadership over China. The administration has accused China of infiltrating U.S. companies and universities to steal research and export-controlled technologies (see 2008130036). “As history has shown, America is a country of thinkers, doers, and innovators,” the White House said. “Importantly, these institutes are a manifestation of the uniquely American free-market approach to technological advancement.”