GAITHERSBURG, Md. — The U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science have signed a memorandum of understanding establishing a collaboration to use AI-accelerated innovation to address national science and technology challenges established by the Genesis Mission. The Genesis Mission is a whole-of-government initiative, led by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, that aims to double the productivity and impact of American science and engineering within a decade by unlocking AI-enabled scientific discovery and innovation. This MOU formalizes NIST’s commitment to that goal. 

NIST and DOE have deep expertise and a shared interest in applying AI innovation to address critical national challenges and opportunities. The MOU will enable the two agencies to coordinate their efforts and leverage their complementary resources within the context of the Genesis Mission in areas including biotechnology, quantum science, and materials design and discovery.

“Our contribution to the Genesis Mission exemplifies NIST’s ongoing commitment to advancing U.S. leadership in critical technologies that are vital to America’s economic and national security,” said Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and NIST Director Arvind Raman. “NIST is using innovative public-private partnerships to apply advanced AI to manufacturing and cybersecurity challenges, with initiatives aimed at rapidly delivering high-impact solutions that can be readily transitioned to the private sector.” 

NIST will execute two of its efforts in support of the Genesis Mission through its Centers for AI in Manufacturing and Critical Infrastructure, a public-private partnership with the nonprofit MITRE Corporation that aims to advance the delivery of AI-based technology solutions to U.S. industry. These efforts will target the Genesis Mission’s national science and technology challenges. Additional areas of collaboration are also being discussed.

First, NIST’s AI Economic Security Center for U.S. Manufacturing Productivity aims to accelerate development and adoption of AI-driven autonomous agents for increased U.S. manufacturing productivity. It uses advanced, AI-based “human in the loop” robotics and autonomous systems to produce cost-competitive, high-value, customizable American products. This center has launched a project that will focus on producing drones for civilian and military applications, with the goal of using AI to scale up production capabilities tenfold in two years. This initiative aligns with the Genesis Mission challenge “Reenvisioning Advanced Manufacturing and Industrial Productivity.”

Second, NIST’s AI Economic Security Center to Secure U.S. Critical Infrastructure from Cyberthreats will accelerate development and adoption of AI-based agents for ultra-high-speed cyberthreat detection and remediation. This initiative focuses on protecting and securing critical infrastructure including power grids, telecommunications networks, water treatment facilities, financial platforms and healthcare systems. This initiative aligns with several of the Genesis Mission challenges aimed at protecting the nation from emerging threats.

Both initiatives are designed as two-year sprints that aim to rapidly produce high-impact results for commercial and industrial deployment while also yielding generalizable strategies that can be replicated across other manufacturing and cybersecurity domains.