NIST and DOE sign memorandum to support White House AI innovation initiative

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the Department of Energy’s Office of Science signed a memorandum of understanding to support the Genesis Mission, a whole-of-government initiative led by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.

The Genesis Mission aims to double the productivity and impact of American science and engineering within a decade by unlocking AI-enabled scientific discovery and innovation.

Under the MOU, NIST will coordinate with DOE to leverage complementary resources in areas including biotechnology, quantum science, and materials design and discovery.

NIST will execute two efforts through its Centers for AI in Manufacturing and Critical Infrastructure, both public-private partnerships with MITRE Corporation.

The first initiative, the AI Economic Security Center for U.S. Manufacturing Productivity, focuses on AI-driven autonomous agents to increase manufacturing productivity, including a project to scale drone production tenfold in two years.

The second initiative, the AI Economic Security Center to Secure U.S. Critical Infrastructure from Cyberthreats, targets AI-based agents for ultra-high-speed cyberthreat detection and remediation across sectors such as power grids, telecommunications, water treatment, finance, and healthcare.

Both initiatives are designed as two-year sprints intended to deliver high-impact results for commercial and industrial deployment while producing strategies that can be replicated in other domains.