The National Science Foundation has awarded $5 million over five years to the University of California, Davis, to run the Artificial Intelligence Institutes Virtual Organization, a community hub for new and existing AI institutes established by the federal government.
AIVO is part of a $100 million public-private investment in AI announced by NSF July 29.
“Artificial intelligence is key to strengthening our workforce and boosting U.S. competitiveness,” said Brian Stone, performing the duties of the NSF director, in a news release. “Through the National AI Research Institutes, we are turning cutting-edge ideas and research into real-world solutions and preparing Americans to lead in the technologies and jobs of the future.”
Up to July 29, AIVO has been a virtual organization with NSF support, run by staff from the Artificial Intelligence Institute for Next Generation Food Systems (AIFS) at UC Davis. With the new investment, it will become a NSF-branded community hub.
AIVO began as an effort to coordinate activities among the original federal AI institutes, including AIFS, and then to share knowledge with new institutes as they were established, said Steve Brown, associate director of AIFS. It has expanded into a virtual hub that supports all the institutes, including organizing an annual summit for AI institutes’ leadership.
Under the new contract, AIVO will provide the events and venues that bring the AI Institutes’ personnel and other stakeholders together and create mechanisms for cross-institute connection. It will also foster the development of new public-private partnerships and promote positive interest in university-based AI research and the development and use of AI for societal good, Brown said.
AIVO also received $1.75 million in December 2024 from Google.org to support AI education in many forms, including AI curriculum for K-16 and workforce training, AI-assisted learning and summer programs in AI for high school teachers and students.
AIFS at UC Davis was one of the seven original AI institutes announced in August 2020. AIFS is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute for Food and Agriculture, while the overall AI Institutes program is led by NSF.