Multi Modal Materials Analysis (MMoMA)

The ARM Institute's 27-01 Core-Funded Technology Project Call is the current cycle of the institute's recurring robotics funding programme, and this round is framed explicitly around Robotics and Physical AI Defense Manufacturing Solutions. ARM is a Manufacturing USA institute funded by the Office of the Secretary of Defense with a consortium of more than 450 industry, academic and government members, and its project calls exist to push robotics, autonomy and AI into U.S. manufacturing rather than to fund basic research. The 27-01 call targets defense manufacturing needs including high-mix castings and forgings, naval vessels, unmanned systems, munitions, and rapid production expansion, with a strong preference for dual-use technology that also benefits the broader U.S. manufacturing base. The preceding 26-01 call, a useful guide to scale and topic style, made roughly USD 2,000,000 available with a USD 500,000 per-project cap and named topic areas of Multi-Modal Inputs for AI Robotics in Manufacturing, Rapid Re-Tasking and Robot Agility, Multi-Robot and Multi-Human Collaboration and Supervised Autonomy, Adaptive Real-Time Path Planning and Control, and Mobile Robotics. The single most important eligibility constraint is membership: only ARM Institute members may submit, so non-members intending to apply need to start the membership process well ahead of the deadlines. The process is two-stage - concept papers are due 16 September 2026 and final submissions by 2 December 2026 at 5:00 PM ET, with a target project start on or before 1 February 2027 and project end by 31 January 2028, which implies a tightly scoped twelve-month execution plan rather than a multi-year research programme.

The Air Force Research Laboratory Information Directorate's Geospatial Intelligence Processing and Exploitation (GeoPEX) Broad Agency Announcement, FA8750-21-S-7006, is an open two-step BAA soliciting white papers for research, development, integration, test, and evaluation of technologies and techniques to provide geospatial intelligence (GEOINT) in all its forms and from whatever source, including imagery, imagery intelligence, and geospatial data. Explicit focus areas include AI/ML techniques for full-spectrum GEOINT, multi-INT data fusion, cloud-based high-performance computing for geospatial analytics, photogrammetry, computer vision for overhead imagery, automated target recognition, change detection, multi-modal foundation models for geospatial data, and edge AI for tactical reconnaissance. The BAA is open and effective until 30 September 2026 with rolling white paper submission; only white papers are accepted as initial submissions and formal proposals are accepted by invitation only. Strong fit for AI and computer vision performers building geospatial analytics, foundation models, or autonomous reconnaissance tools for Air Force, intelligence community, and combatant command users.

The ARM Institute's 26-01 Core-Funded Technology Project Call makes approximately $2 million available to fund multiple robotics and AI projects that advance U.S. manufacturing, with individual requests to the ARM Institute capped at $500,000. Topic areas are multi-modal inputs for AI robotics in manufacturing, rapid re-tasking and robot agility, multi-robot and multi-human collaboration with supervised autonomy, adaptive real-time path planning and control, and mobile robotics. The call is oriented toward Department of Defense manufacturing needs including castings, forgings, submarines, unmanned aerial systems, and munitions production. Concept papers are due February 4 in the ARM Member Community, with a public informational webinar January 8 and a target project start date of October 1, 2026. Project cost share is weighted in evaluation.