NIST signs agreement with Energy Department to join the Genesis Mission on AI
The memorandum of understanding covers biotechnology, quantum science and materials discovery, with a stated goal of doubling scientific and engineering productivity within a decade.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology and the US Department of Energy’s Office of Science signed a memorandum of understanding on AI-accelerated innovation on Aug. 4, 2026 in Gaithersburg, Maryland, NIST announced. The agreement brings NIST into the Genesis Mission, a government-wide initiative led by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.
Cooperation under the memorandum covers biotechnology, quantum science and materials design and discovery, with a stated goal of doubling scientific and engineering productivity and impact within 10 years, according to NIST. The work will be pursued through public-private collaboration with the nonprofit MITRE, by way of AI centers focused on manufacturing and critical infrastructure.
One center, focused on manufacturing productivity as a matter of economic security, is to develop and disseminate autonomous agents using human-in-the-loop robotics and autonomous systems, NIST said, and has begun a project on production of drones for military and civilian use with a target of increasing drone production capacity tenfold within two years. A second center, focused on critical infrastructure cybersecurity, is to develop AI agents for extremely fast threat detection and response, protecting the electric grid, communications networks, water treatment facilities, financial platforms and health care systems.
The centers are structured as short, two-year concentrated projects. NIST Director and Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology Arvind Raman commented on the agreement, and the agency said additional areas of cooperation are under discussion.