A bill to authorize the Director of the National Science Foundation to identify grand challenges and award competitive prizes for artificial intelligence research and development.

This bill would give the National Science Foundation (NSF) the authority to identify significant grand challenges in artificial intelligence research and development, then award competitive prizes to researchers and organizations that successfully address these challenges. The prize-based approach is intended to incentivize innovation and accelerate progress in AI technology by offering financial rewards for solving important problems in the field.

If enacted, this legislation could influence how AI research is funded and prioritized in the United States by creating a new mechanism for the NSF to direct resources toward specific AI challenges deemed important by the agency. The bill is currently in the early stages of the legislative process, having been introduced in the Senate in February 2026 and referred to committee for consideration.