1,000+ Opportunities
Find the right grant
Search federal, foundation, and corporate grants with AI — or browse by agency, topic, and state.
DARPA's AI Forward initiative explores new directions for artificial intelligence research aimed at producing trustworthy systems for national security missions, organized around three research areas: foundational theory of AI, AI engineering for reliable real-world deployment, and human-AI teaming. Funding is delivered through streamlined AI Exploration (AIE) opportunities that are periodically solicited as Solicitation Notices on SAM.
gov. AIE awards are typically up to $1 million for 18-month feasibility studies, with projects required to begin within three months of the opportunity announcement and DARPA intending to make awards within roughly 90 days of posting.
Get alerted about grants like this
Get emailed when new opportunities from “Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)” or related funders appear. Free, weekly, unsubscribe anytime.
Or search similar grants →According to the current listing, eligibility includes: Open to qualified researchers and experts in AI including U.S. universities, research institutions, nonprofit research organizations, small businesses, and large defense contractors. Abstracts are typically required before full proposals. Confirm the full requirements in the official notice before applying.
The current listing shows up to $1,000,000 per AI Exploration (AIE) award for 18-month feasibility studies. Verify award ceilings, matching requirements, and allowable costs in the official notice.
DARPA AI Forward Initiative for Trustworthy AI in National Security Missions (AI Exploration Opportunities) is funded by Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). Verify program details on the funder's official page before applying.
Start from the official opportunity page linked in this listing — it carries the sponsor's submission instructions.
The Department of Defense FY2026 Defense University Research Instrumentation Program (DURIP) provides funding for U.S. universities to acquire research equipment and instrumentation in areas important to national defense, including AI and machine learning hardware. The program is administered jointly by the Army Research Office (ARO), Office of Naval Research (ONR), and Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR), with approximately $34 million available and 95 awards anticipated. DURIP funds the acquisition of specialized computing hardware for AI/ML research (GPU clusters, TPUs, neuromorphic processors), robotics and autonomous systems testbeds, sensor arrays and data collection systems for machine learning training, high-performance computing infrastructure for defense-relevant AI research, and laboratory equipment for human-AI interaction studies. The program specifically supports equipment that enhances research-related education in DoD-priority disciplines. While general-purpose computing is not eligible, computing equipment directly supporting DoD-relevant AI research programs qualifies. No cost sharing is required.
Vinnova, Sweden's national innovation agency, funds projects developing applied AI solutions for Swedish industry through its Advanced Digitalization Programme. Each project can apply for between 2 and 10 million SEK (approximately $190,000 to $950,000 USD) covering up to 50% of eligible project costs. The total call budget is 60 million SEK. Projects run for 12-24 months and focus on two key areas: Intelligent Edge (AI for real-time application in the sensor chain) and AI-based decision support. All projects must address industrial needs and integrate gender equality and climate change perspectives. Scientific publications must be open access. A parallel call also funds AI and cybersecurity projects at 1-10 million SEK per project with a 50 million SEK total budget.
DPA26BZ05-DV019 asks small businesses to reduce ISR video transmission from small drones by 90 to 99 percent while preserving what an operator actually needs, on a Jetson-class board at a 2-watt final power budget. It is Direct-to-Phase-II, up to $1.5 million base plus a $500,000 option, and its exclusion list — no weapon release, no lethal engagement, no named-person identification — is the most strategically revealing paragraph in DARPA's FY26 Release 5.
Read articleDPA26BZ05-DV018 is the largest award in DARPA's FY26 SBIR Release 5 — up to $3 million over 18 months, Direct-to-Phase-II only. It funds four subsystem tracks for an underwater 3D concrete printer that uses seafloor sediment and seawater with under 20 percent binder. Here is what the Trenton program already proved, why the track structure is really a supplier-qualification exercise, and who can clear the prior-feasibility bar in the four weeks that remain.
Read articleTwo weeks after the DARPA Lift Challenge ended with the winner at 3.84:1 — short of the 4:1 target — DARPA posted a Direct-to-Phase-II SBIR that requires empirical proof of a 4:1 payload-to-weight ratio to bid. DPA26BZ05-DV022 offers up to $1.5 million over 24 months across two tracks that map exactly onto the Challenge's two design prizes. Here is who can actually clear the entry bar, what the month-9, month-18, and month-24 gates demand, and why the certification language is the real story.
Read article