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The NSF Foundational Research in Robotics (FRR) Program is a grant from the National Science Foundation that funds fundamental research advancing the science and engineering of robotics systems, including sensing, actuation, planning, learning, and human-robot interaction.
The program supports projects that develop new theoretical frameworks and experimental methods to enable robots to operate reliably and effectively in complex, dynamic environments. Research funded under FRR is expected to have long-term impact on both fundamental science and societal applications of robotics. Eligible applicants are U.S. academic institutions, nonprofit organizations, and other entities eligible for NSF funding.
The application deadline is December 31, 2026. Award amounts vary by project scope.
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Foundational Research in Robotics (FRR) | NSF - U.S. National Science Foundation Foundational Research in Robotics (FRR) NSF's implementation of the revised 2 CFR NSF Financial Assistance awards (grants and cooperative agreements) made on or after October 1, 2024, will be subject to the applicable set of award conditions, dated October 1, 2024, available on the NSF website .
These terms and conditions are consistent with the revised guidance specified in the OMB Guidance for Federal Financial Assistance published in the Federal Register on April 22, 2024.
Important information for proposers All proposals must be submitted in accordance with the requirements specified in this funding opportunity and in the NSF Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPPG) that is in effect for the relevant due date to which the proposal is being submitted. It is the responsibility of the proposer to ensure that the proposal meets these requirements.
Submitting a proposal prior to a specified deadline does not negate this requirement.
Updates to NSF Research Security Policies On July 10, 2025, NSF issued an Important Notice providing updates to the agency's research security policies, including a research security training requirement, Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment Program annual certification requirement, prohibition on Confucius institutes and an updated FFDR reporting and submission timeline.
The Foundational Research in Robotics (FRR) program, jointly led by the CISE and ENG Directorates, supports research on robotic systems that exhibit significant levels of both computational capability and physical complexity.
For the purposes of this program, a robot is defined as intelligence embodied in an engineered construct, with the ability to process information, sense, plan, and move within or substantially alter its working environment. Here intelligence includes a broad class of methods that enable a robot to solve problems or to make contextually appropriate decisions and act upon them.
The program welcomes research that considers inextricably interwoven questions of intelligence, computation, and embodiment. Projects may also focus on a distinct aspect of intelligence, computation, or embodiment, as long as the proposed research is clearly justified in the context of a class of robots. The focus of the FRR program is on foundational advances in robotics.
Robotics is a deeply interdisciplinary field, and proposals are encouraged across the full range of fundamental engineering and computer science research challenges arising in robotics. To be responsive to the FRR program, each proposal should clearly articulate the following three points: The focus of the research project should be a robot or a class of robots, as defined above. [Is there a robot?]
The goal of the project should be to endow a robot or a class of robots with new and useful capabilities or to significantly enhance existing capabilities. [Will a robot gain a new or significantly improved capability?] The intellectual contribution of the proposed work should address fundamental gaps in robotics.
[Is robotics essential to the intellectual merit of the proposal?] Meaningful experimental validation on a physical platform is encouraged. Projects that do not represent a direct fundamental contribution to the science of robotics or are better aligned with other existing programs at NSF should not be submitted to the FRR program.
Potential investigators are strongly encouraged to discuss their projects with an FRR Program Officer before submission. Non-compliant proposals may be returned without review.
Updates and announcements NSF-NIFA opportunity in agricultural robotics October 31, 2025 - Foundational Research in Robotics – National Robotics… October 30, 2025 - Foundational Research in Robotics – National Robotics… May 14, 2025 - 2025 ENG/CMMI CAREER Program Webinar May 14, 2025 - 2025 ENG/CMMI CAREER Program Webinar May 8, 2025 - 2025 ENG/CMMI CAREER Program Webinar May 8, 2025 - 2025 ENG/CMMI CAREER Program Webinar June 2, 2022 - Informational Webinar: Sunset of the National Robotics Initiative April 26, 2021 - Robotics Program Webinar for CAREER Principal Investigators Awards made through this program Browse projects funded by this program Map of recent awards made through this program Directorate for Engineering (ENG) Division of Civil, Mechanical and Manufacturing Innovation (ENG/CMMI) Division of Electrical, Communications and Cyber Systems (ENG/ECCS) Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE) Division of Computing and Communication Foundations (CISE/CCF) Division of Information and Intelligent Systems (CISE/IIS) Division of Computer and Network Systems (CISE/CNS)
Based on current listing details, eligibility includes: U. S. academic institutions, nonprofit organizations, and other entities eligible for NSF funding. Proposals must follow NSF Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPPG). Applicants should confirm final requirements in the official notice before submission.
Current published award information indicates See official notice Always verify allowable costs, matching requirements, and funding caps directly in the sponsor documentation.
The current target date is December 31, 2026. Build your timeline backwards from this date to cover registrations, approvals, attachments, and final submission checks.
Federal grant success rates typically range from 10-30%, varying by agency and program. Build a strong proposal with clear objectives, measurable outcomes, and a well-justified budget to improve your chances.
Requirements vary by sponsor, but typically include a project narrative, budget justification, organizational capability statement, and key personnel CVs. Check the official notice for the complete list of required attachments.
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Review timelines vary by funder. Federal agencies typically take 3-6 months from submission to award notification. Foundation grants may be faster, often 1-3 months. Check the program's timeline in the official solicitation for specific dates.
Many federal programs offer multi-year funding or allow competitive renewals. Check the official solicitation for continuation and renewal policies. Non-competing continuation applications are common for multi-year awards.
Fire Science Innovations through Research and Education (FIRE) program is sponsored by National Science Foundation (NSF). This program invites innovative multidisciplinary and multisector investigations focused on convergent research and education activities in wildland fire. It supports research that can inform risk management and response, adaptation, and resilience across infrastructures, communities, cultures, and natural environments. Relevant topics include developing novel materials and methods for retrofitting existing buildings and remediating buildings following wildfire and smoke events.
Build and Broaden (B2) supports fundamental research and research capacity across disciplines at minority-serving institutions (MSIs) and encourages research collaborations with scholars at MSIs. Growing the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) workforce is a national priority. National forecasts of the impending shortage of workers with science and engineering skills and essential research workers underscore a need to expand opportunities to participate in STEM research (President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, 2012). MSIs make considerable contributions to educating and training science leaders for U.S. economic growth and competitiveness. Yet NSF has received comparatively few grant submissions from, or involving, scholars at MSIs. Targeted outreach activities reveal that MSIs have varying degrees of familiarity with funding opportunities within NSF and particularly within the Social, Behavioral and Economic (SBE) Sciences Directorate. As a result, NSF is limited in its ability to support research and training opportunities in the SBE sciences at these institutions. With its emphasis on broadening participation , Build and Broaden is designed to address this problem. SBE offers Build and Broaden in order to increase proposal submissions, advance research collaborations and networks involving MSI scholars, and support research activities in the SBE sciences at MSIs. Proposals that outline research projects in the SBE sciences that increase students' pursuit of graduate training, enhance PI productivity build research capacity, or cultivate partnerships are especially encouraged to apply. Proposals are invited from single principal investigators based at MSIs and from multiple co-investigators from groups of MSIs. Principal investigators who are not affiliated with MSIs may submit proposals, but must collaborate with PIs, co-PIs, or senior personnel from MSIs and describe how their project will foster research partnerships or capacity-building with at least one MSI as a primary goal of the proposed work. Proposals may address any scientific and cross-disciplinary areas supported by SBE. These areas include anthropology, archaeology, cognitive neuroscience, decision science, ecological research, economics, geography, linguistics, law and science, organizational behavior, political science, public policy, security and preparedness, psychology, and sociology. To find research areas supported by SBE please visit the SBE programs page or visit the NSF funding and awards page. Funding Opportunity Number: 22-638. Assistance Listing: 47.075. Funding Instrument: G. Category: ST. Award Amount: $8M total program funding.