The U.S. National Science Foundation today announced two major advancements in America's AI infrastructure: the launch of the Integrated Data Systems and Services (NSF IDSS) program to build out national-scale data systems and the selection of 10 datasets for integration into the National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource (NAIRR) Pilot (link is external).
These efforts directly align with priorities outlined in the White House AI Action Plan, which calls for investments in research infrastructure and datasets to strengthen U.S. leadership in AI research, education and innovation.
NSF IDSS: Building a national integrated data infrastructure
The NSF IDSS program will fund the development and operation of powerful national-scale systems and associated services that allow researchers across the country to access, use and share scientific data - accelerating innovation and strengthening American competitiveness in AI and other sectors.
Currently, there are no dedicated programs at NSF that support operational national-scale data systems. IDSS fills this gap by enabling the deployment of high-impact platforms that serve research and education communities and interoperate with other federal science and data infrastructure efforts.
A robust data infrastructure is also critical to the success of the NSF-led NAIRR Pilot, a key initiative expanding access to AI research resources. As AI transforms sectors from health care and agriculture to energy and national defense, researchers face the challenge of accessing and integrating vast data to power advanced AI systems. Awarded systems and services through the IDSS program will be integrated into the NAIRR and other NSF-managed programs, such as the NSF Advanced Cyberinfrastructure Coordination Ecosystem: Services and Support program, to be made easily discoverable and accessible to the nation's research and education communities. These systems will connect data with computing, instruments and software, making AI development, data analysis and scientific discovery faster, more reliable and more reproducible.
IDSS will support three classes of projects:
- New integrative data systems built to serve national-scale needs.
- Support to scale up existing successful prototypes and regional systems to a national level impact and performance.
- Planning grants to nurture ideas for future IDSS systems and services projects.
IDSS will also support workforce development to manage and operate these systems, strengthening the U.S. cyberinfrastructure for AI, scientific progress and long-term competitiveness.
NAIRR Pilot: Datasets to power AI literacy, education and innovation
In parallel, NSF announced the selection of 10 datasets for integration into the NAIRR Pilot.
The datasets were selected through a competitive process led by NSF in partnership with an interagency working group of 12 federal agencies, inviting submissions supporting AI skill development across various learning environments to help grow the nation's AI-literate workforce.
Featured datasets include:
- AI4Shipwrecks (link is external) (University of Michigan)
- Turbulence Database (link is external) (Johns Hopkins University)
- Cell Painting Gallery (link is external) (Broad Institute)
- FathomNet (link is external) (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute)
- PatchDB (link is external) (George Mason University)
- Phase-Field Fracture Simulation (link is external) (Johns Hopkins University)
- SecureChain (link is external) (Purdue University)
- Microbiome Preterm Birth DREAM Challenge Dataset (link is external) (The March of Dimes Repository for Preterm Birth Research at the March of Dimes Prematurity Research Center at the University of California, San Francisco)
- Industry Documents Library (link is external) (University of California, San Francisco)
- OpenTopography (link is external) (UC San Diego, Arizona State University and the Earthscope Consortium)
The datasets cover a range of domains, including lidar-based terrain mapping, microbiome data and software supply chain graphs, and several of them will offer integration with NAIRR Pilot partner platforms.
The generation, collection and curation of high-quality datasets are suited to training innovative AI models targeted at specific domains or national challenges. In the coming weeks, many of the datasets will become more deeply embedded in the NAIRR Pilot.
"Data infrastructure and access to high-quality datasets are critical components of a thriving AI innovation ecosystem," said Katie Antypas, director of the NSF Office of Advanced Cyberinfrastructure. "But these efforts go beyond building data infrastructure - they will sharpen America's competitive edge and lay the foundation for a new era of leadership in science and innovation."
Get more information about about IDSS and NAIRR.
