Governor Hochul's $50 Million Capital Investment for RNA Institute

Governor Hochul's $50 Million Capital Investment for RNA Institute is sponsored by New York State. State-funded expansion to support the RNA Institute's research and development.

Gov. Hochul Announces $50M Life Sciences Expansion for RNA Institute research | University at Albany Gov. Hochul Announces $50M Life Sciences Expansion for RNA Institute research The RNA Institute's labs will expand by approximately 20,000 square feet thanks to the state funding announced last week by Gov. Kathy Hochul. (Photo by Patrick Dodson) ALBANY, N. Y.

(Nov. 6, 2025) — The University at Albany's Life Sciences Research Building will get a $50 million state-funded expansion to support the work of the RNA Institute, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Thursday.

The funding was included in SUNY's enacted 2025-26 capital budget to advance the Institute's research, training, and workforce development, including its cutting-edge work using artificial intelligence to guide drug discovery, Hochul said. Read the governor's full announcement .

UAlbany's RNA Institute advances basic research to understand, diagnose and treat debilitating and deadly diseases, including ALS, Alzheimer's, cancer and myotonic dystrophy (DM) — the most common form of adult-onset muscular dystrophy.

RNA stands for ribonuclaeic acid, a key piece of genetic material that — among other jobs — transmits critical information within our cells that can cause disease when it malfunctions but also be used to treat or correct malfunctioning cell processes. Better understanding how and where it can be used in precision medicine is central to the Institute's work.

"UAlbany's RNA Institute is world-renowned for pioneering new approaches to biomedical research, using artificial intelligence to develop innovative technologies and treatments that can help people live longer, healthier lives," UAlbany President Havidán Rodríguez said.

"With Gov. Hochul's generous $50 million investment in the Life Sciences Research Building, the RNA Institute will be able to expand and enhance its research capacity, providing state-of-the-art facilities for researchers and hands-on training for the next generation of New York's workforce — establishing the University and the Capital Region as a leader in RNA science and biotechnology."

Read the president's full message to the campus about the announcement. The construction funding will be used to: Renovate and expand existing labs to increase capacity .

The existing Life Sciences Research Building, Biology and RNA core facilities will be upgraded with next-gen instruments and data infrastructure, and the LSRB will be expanded by approximately 20,000 square feet of wet/dry lab space, collaboration zones and shared instrumentation suites. Create a 3,000-square-foot space for preclinical development, biosafety testing, and pilot Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) manufacturing.

This facility will include pilot-scale cleanrooms, bioreactors, and RNA synthesis platforms supporting commercialization and clinical trial readiness. This suite will support research and critically needed biotech and biomanufacturing workforce development in New York. Provide dedicated artificial intelligence and health research space, which is essential for interdisciplinary, data-driven biomedical research .

This will facilitate integration with Hochul's Empire AI initiative and UAlbany's AI Plus Initiative, and will provide high-performance computing access, data visualization labs and collaborative workspaces. The integrated health space will provide community and patient access for educational and interventional research.

These spaces will support intersectional research into complex diseases like myotonic dystrophy and cancer along with emerging public health threats like viruses, extreme weather and pollution. Provide interactive educational and training elements for community engagement and K-12 outreach . Academic and industry recruitment will bolster the pipeline and diversity of New York's STEM workforce.

World-class facilities for pioneering research “This $50 million investment comes at a pivotal time for scientific research nationwide,” said Thenkurussi “Kesh” Kesavadas, UAlbany’s vice president for research and economic development.

“As the federal funding landscape shifts, this support is a vital bridge to sustain and accelerate breakthroughs in areas like RNA science that are emerging at the intersection of biomedical research and artificial intelligence.

Gov. Hochul and Chancellor King’s support ensures UAlbany researchers will remain at the forefront of this transformation with world-class laboratories and training facilities to prepare the scientists and innovators who will make up the next generation of New York's biotechnology workforce. ” Hochul's announcement came a week after news that the RNA Institute will share a $6.

5 million National Institutes of Health grant with Virginia Commonwealth University to establish Wellstone Muscular Dystrophy Special Research Center, one of just six in the nation. In August, Hochul announced the Institute would partner with the University of Rochester to use New York's state-of-the-art Empire AI system to advance its search for RNA-based therapies for neurodegenerative diseases like DM.

"This is not just research, it's proof that New York is building a brighter and healthier future for everyone,” Hochul said in August. The University's next step on the expansion project will be to work with the State University Construction Fund to hire a project architect.

“This investment by New York State and Gov. Hochul provides critical funds to grow the UAlbany’s RNA Institute and ensure we remain leaders in the field of RNA research," said Andy Berglund, director of the Institute.

"We look forward to using this investment to continue to collaborate with our internal and external stakeholders to advance RNA research, train the next generation of RNA scientists, and to support New York’s life sciences community. ”