NSF grant ~$9M: E-CORE, an island-wide "AI x sustainable STEM" research infrastructure for Puerto Rico (UPR Mayaguez)
An NSF EPSCoR E-CORE award of ~$9 million obligated (estimated total $10M) led by the University of Puerto Rico Mayaguez. Eight UPR campuses and the Ana G. Mendez system join as emerging research institutions to build an island-wide research infrastructure for AI-based sustainable STEM technologies. Pillars: energy-resilient AI systems and quantum sensing and secure communication, with 23 seed awards and computing access lifting smaller institutions. Runs July 2026 to June 2030.
Grant overview (primary data)
- Award amount$9,000,000 / Est. total $10,000,000
- RecipientUniversity of Puerto Rico Mayaguez (PR)
- ProgramEPSCoR RII: E-CORE
- Period2026-07-15 〜 2030-06-30
- FunderU.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) / NSF
Key points
- Lead: University of Puerto Rico Mayaguez; ~$9M obligated (estimated total $10M); July 2026 to June 2030
- NSF EPSCoR E-CORE — a program strengthening research ecosystems across an entire jurisdiction
- Eight UPR campuses plus the Ana G. Mendez system integrated as emerging research institutions, with 23 seed awards and computing access
- Research pillars: energy-resilient AI-based systems (hardware and software) and quantum sensing and secure communication
- Partnerships, entrepreneurship, and STEM workforce development extend the design to economic development
The point of this award is not investment in one institution but the construction of an entire jurisdiction-wide research ecosystem. E-CORE is part of NSF EPSCoR — the program that lifts regions with comparatively thin research infrastructure — and is designed to raise research capacity and competitiveness across Puerto Rico as a whole.
The participant list tells the story: not just the flagship Mayaguez and Rio Piedras campuses, but eight UPR campuses from Aguadilla to Utuado and the Ana G. Mendez system, folded in from the start as emerging research institutions (ERIs), with 23 seed awards and access to advanced computing directed their way.
1Research pillars rooted in local context
The choice of research pillars is grounded in local context. Since Hurricane Maria, grid fragility has constrained research and the economy in Puerto Rico. The emphasis on energy-resilient AI-based technologies — with combined hardware and software work on computing performance and power efficiency — sits precisely where a global constraint of AI research (compute and power) meets an urgent local need.
The second pillar, quantum sensing and secure communication, is likewise an area NSF names among national priorities alongside AI.
2Connecting government, academia and industry
The design also wires in industry and government: partnerships with the Puerto Rico Science, Technology, and Research Trust and the Science and Technology Steering Committee, innovation expanded through entrepreneurship and seed funding, and a skilled STEM workforce aimed at local energy-infrastructure challenges.
The record frames research infrastructure as a cornerstone for economic development — an award that reads as a single bet on strengthening university research and rebuilding a regional economy together.
Why it matters
A flagship example of U.S. regional policy (EPSCoR) building AI research infrastructure where it is thin. The pairing of energy-constrained AI computing and quantum communication with seed grants and shared computing as an equity mechanism is a useful reference for regional innovation policy and university research strategy.
FAQ
What is EPSCoR?
Why the emphasis on energy resilience?
Why do the obligated and total amounts differ?
Sources (primary)
Source: NSF Award Search (U.S. National Science Foundation, public domain). Amounts are the obligated amount. For privacy, we do not handle principal investigator names.
- NSF Award (original, official)
- NSF Award ID: 2539413