Us Ignite Inc

PPO: PLATFORMS FOR ADVANCED WIRELESS RESEARCH (PAWR) PROJECT OFFICE

US IGNITE: TRACK 2: SUSTAINABLE ECOSYSTEM OF SMART APPLICATIONS

US IGNITE - INNOVATION ECOSYSTEM PROGRAMS TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND SUPPORT -THE U.S. IGNITE INNOVATION ECOSYSTEM PROGRAMS TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND SUPPORT PROJECT SEEKS TO PROVIDE A TIERED APPROACH OF ONGOING SUPPORT AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR APPLICANT REGIONS THAT PURSUED FEDERAL, INNOVATION-FOCUSED PLACE-BASED ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT GRANT PROGRAMS BUT DID NOT ULTIMATELY RECEIVE FUNDING DUE TO LIMITED AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS. THE INTENT IS TO SUSTAIN THE SIGNIFICANT MOMENTUM GENERATED BY PROGRESS MADE IN PURSUIT OF THESE COMPETITIVE PROGRAMS, HELPING SUSTAIN REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES, DEVELOP ALTERNATIVE APPROACHES TO SUSTAINABILITY, AND ULTIMATELY ENHANCING REGIONAL INNOVATION ECOSYSTEMS ACROSS THE COUNTRY. U.S. IGNITE?S APPROACH WILL FOCUS ON FOSTERING REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOP THROUGH THE DEPLOYMENT OF ONLINE RESOURCES, ENHANCE COLLABORATION BETWEEN REGIONAL STAKEHOLDERS, EXPAND ACCESS TO FUNDING AND INVESTMENT, AND HELP DRIVE THE TRANSLATION OF EMERGING TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH INTO REGIONAL ECONOMIC COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE. THE PROJECT INCLUDES A PLAN TO PROVIDE FOUNDATIONAL SUPPORT FOR UP TO 200 REGIONAL APPLICANTS, WITH MORE TARGETED INVESTMENT FOR UP TO 15-20 SELECTED COMMUNITIES. THIS WORK BUILDS UPON THE SIGNIFICANT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND TECHNOLOGY ACCELERATION MOMENTUM GENERATED BY VARIOUS FEDERAL PLACE-BASED INNOVATION ECOSYSTEM INVESTMENT PROGRAMS, NOTABLY INCLUDING THE NSF REGIONAL INNOVATION ENGINES PROGRAM. BY DESIGNING A STRUCTURED, MULTI-TIER SUPPORT SYSTEM FOR DELIVERING TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, SUPPORTS, AND GUIDANCE TO REGIONS, THIS AWARD CAN HELP SUSTAIN THE POSITIVE ECONOMIC AND TECHNOLOGICAL IMPACTS GENERATED BY THESE PLACE-BASED PROGRAMS, EVEN WITHOUT A LARGE IMPLEMENTATION AWARD BEING MADE TO THE REGION. OVER THE COURSE OF THREE YEARS, THIS PROJECT WILL SUPPORT UP TO 200 REGIONS WITH A BASELINE LEVEL OF SUPPORT WHILE TRACKING THE IMPACT THAT THIS SUPPORT HAS ON REGIONAL SUCCESS AND ADVANCEMENTS TO THE TECHNICAL STATE OF PRACTICE FOCUSED ON BY A PARTICULAR REGIONAL COALITION. THE ACTIVITIES SUPPORTED BY THIS AWARD HAVE A SIGNIFICANT CHANCE TO ADVANCE NATIONAL PRIORITIES, BOLSTER REGIONAL ECONOMIC GROWTH, AND ADVANCE TECHNOLOGICAL PROGRESS. THIS AWARD?S ACTIVITIES ARE LED BY U.S. IGNITE, A NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION HAS EXTENSIVE EXPERIENCE WORKING CLOSELY WITH COMMUNITIES, STARTUPS, AND RESEARCHERS TO SOLVE TOUGH ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION CHALLENGES. THIS PROJECT?S SUPPORT PLAN WILL HAVE A NATIONAL SCOPE, PROVIDING REGIONS WITH DIRECT ACCESS TO RESOURCES, EXPERT GUIDANCE, AND STRATEGIC RECOMMENDATIONS. ACTIVITIES WILL ALSO INCLUDE THE DEVELOPMENT OF BROADLY APPLICABLE PLAYBOOKS ON INDUSTRIAL CLUSTER EXPANSION, STARTUP ACCELERATION AND FORMATION, AND FUNDING STRATEGIES. IN ITS INITIAL YEAR, U.S. IGNITE WILL WORK TO LAUNCH THE EFFORT AND ASSESS REGIONAL AND TECHNICAL STRENGTHS AMONG ITS COHORT. IN YEARS TWO AND THREE, U.S. IGNITE WILL DEPLOY DEEPER LEVELS OF SUPPORTS INCLUDING PLAYBOOKS, ONLINE TOOLS, ANNUAL CONVENINGS, AND IN-DEPTH TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR A SMALLER COHORT OF COMMUNITIES. THE AWARD INCLUDES FUNDING FOR A ROBUST EVALUATION PROGRAM, TO BETTER INFORM HOW TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE EFFORTS FOR ECOSYSTEM SUPPORT IN THE FUTURE CAN BE TAILORED AND REFINED ? THIS HAS THE POTENTIAL TO INFORM SCIENCE INVESTMENT POLICY AND TO MAKE SIGNIFICANT INTELLECTUAL CONTRIBUTIONS TO A GROWING FIELD OF PRACTICE. INVESTMENT IN THIS PROJECT IS BOTH CONSISTENT AND WELL-ALIGNED WITH THE GOALS AND BROAD STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES OF NSF TIP. THIS INVESTMENT IS CONSISTENT WITH AGENCY?S GOALS AND THE SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNOLOGICAL COMMUNITY?S INTEREST IN UNDERSTANDING HOW TO FURTHER EXPAND THE REGIONAL IMPACT OF ITS PLACE-BASED INVESTMENTS AND, CONSEQUENTLY, DRIVE POSITIVE ECONOMIC OUTCOMES FOR ALL AMERICANS. THIS AWARD REFLECTS NSF'S STATUTORY MISSION AND HAS BEEN DEEMED WORTHY OF SUPPORT THROUGH EVALUATION USING THE FOUNDATION'S INTELLECTUAL MERIT AND BROADER IMPACTS REVIEW CRITERIA.- SUBAWARDS ARE PLANNED FOR THIS AWARD.

PAWR PROJECT OFFICE RENEWAL -THE PLATFORMS FOR ADVANCED WIRELESS RESEARCH (PAWR) PROGRAM, AS ADMINISTERED BY THE PAWR PROJECT OFFICE (PPO), IS BUILDING A SHARED INTELLECTUAL FOUNDATION IN WIRELESS RESEARCH THROUGH THE DEPLOYMENT OF FOUR LARGE-SCALE NETWORK TESTBEDS ACROSS THE U.S. THESE PLATFORMS PROVIDE UNIQUE CAPABILITIES FOR TESTING NEXT-GENERATION NETWORK TECHNOLOGIES, AND FOR ENSURING A HEALTHY AND INCLUSIVE ECOSYSTEM FOR WIRELESS INNOVATION. WITH AN EMPHASIS ON OPEN AND PROGRAMMABLE NETWORK SYSTEMS, THE PAWR PROGRAM ENABLES WIRELESS RESEARCH THROUGH 5G, 6G, AND BEYOND. IT ALSO FORMS A HUB FOR ACADEMIC, COMMERCIAL, AND GOVERNMENT INTERESTS, CREATING NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR RESEARCH COLLABORATION DESIGNED TO SUSTAIN U.S. WIRELESS LEADERSHIP AND ECONOMIC COMPETITIVENESS. THE PPO WILL EXTEND THE SUCCESS OF THE PAWR PROGRAM BY STRENGTHENING PLATFORM OPERATIONS TO SUPPORT RESEARCH IN AREAS SUCH AS SPECTRUM SHARING, OPEN AND SOFTWARE-DRIVEN NETWORKS, AND MACHINE LEARNING TO OPTIMIZE NETWORK PERFORMANCE. THE PPO WILL CONTINUE MANY EXISTING EFFORTS TO DRIVE THE TESTBEDS TOWARD SUSTAINABLE OPERATIONS AND THE PRODUCTION OF MEANINGFUL RESEARCH AND INDEPENDENT DATASETS. IT WILL ALSO INTRODUCE NEW ACTIVITIES TO IMPROVE PLATFORM USABILITY, TARGET HIGH-VALUE INDUSTRY AND GOVERNMENT PARTNERSHIPS, AND EXTEND OUTREACH ACTIVITIES ACROSS THE RESEARCH COMMUNITY. THESE EFFORTS WILL HELP TO EXPAND AND ACCELERATE WIRELESS INNOVATION, AND ENHANCE BOTH THE CONNECTIVITY AND SECURITY OF U.S. NETWORKS. THIS AWARD REFLECTS NSF'S STATUTORY MISSION AND HAS BEEN DEEMED WORTHY OF SUPPORT THROUGH EVALUATION USING THE FOUNDATION'S INTELLECTUAL MERIT AND BROADER IMPACTS REVIEW CRITERIA.

OVERCOME: CONNECTIVITY FOR UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES

THIS EDA INVESTMENT SUPPORTS THE US IGNITE, INC. WITH LAUNCHING THE DC REGIONAL STARTUP AND WORKFORCE TRAINING PROJECT, A TWO-YEAR PROGRAM ACCELERATING TECHNOLOGY-FOCUSED WORKFORCE AND SMALL BUSINESS TRAINING IN TARGETED OPPORTUNITY ZONES IN WASHINGTON, DC AND NORTHERN VIRGINIA. THE PROJECT WILL HELP IMPROVE THE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES FOR SMALL BUSINESSES AND STARTUPS BOTH OF WHICH WERE SEVERELY AFFECTED BY THE ECONOMIC FALLOUT OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC BY EXPANDING ACCESS TO DIGITAL SKILLS AND TRAINING. ONCE IMPLEMENTED, THE PROJECT WILL PROVIDE RESIDENTS AND SMALL BUSINESSES WITH NEW OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE IN RAPIDLY GROWING TECHNOLOGY-BASED FIELDS TO INCLUDE CYBERSECURITY, DATA SCIENCE, AND CLOUD COMPUTING, WHICH WILL HELP ADDRESS THE REGION'S WORKFORCE STRATEGY AND CONTRIBUTE TO THE INDUSTRY'S MARKET GROWTH AND RESILIENCY.

PAWR-ENS PROJECT OFFICE -THE PLATFORMS FOR ADVANCED WIRELESS RESEARCH (PAWR) PROGRAM WAS CREATED BY THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION (NSF) TO ACCELERATE WIRELESS TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT, LOWER BARRIERS TO INNOVATION, AND TRAIN A FUTURE WORKFORCE OF NETWORK AND SOFTWARE ENGINEERS. TO LAUNCH THE PROGRAM, NSF INSTITUTED THE PAWR PROJECT OFFICE (PPO), WHICH MANAGED THE SELECTION, DEPLOYMENT, AND EARLY OPERATION OF FOUR ADVANCED WIRELESS TESTBEDS. AS THE PAWR TESTBEDS MATURED, THE PPO TOOK ON NEW ROLES WITH THE PROGRAM INCLUDING TESTING AND VALIDATION OF PLATFORM CAPABILITIES, PARTNER OUTREACH, AND WIRELESS RESEARCH ADVOCACY. NSF HAS EXTENDED SUPPORT TO SEVERAL OF THE ORIGINAL PAWR PLATFORMS AND ADDED PROJECTS TO ITS COMMUNITY INFRASTRUCTURE FOR RESEARCH IN COMPUTER AND INFORMATION SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING (CIRC) PROGRAM VIA ENHANCING AND SUSTAINING GRANTS. TOGETHER, THESE PLATFORMS AND PROJECTS MAKE UP THE PAWR-ENS PORTFOLIO, WHICH THE PAWR-ENS PROJECT OFFICE IS DESIGNED TO MANAGE. THE PROJECT OFFICE BUILDS ON THE ORIGINAL MISSION OF THE PPO WITH A SPECIFIC FOCUS ON ALIGNING PAWR-ENS PLATFORMS WITH US RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT PRIORITIES. THIS EFFORT WILL POSITION THE PAWR-ENS PLATFORMS TO ACCELERATE INNOVATION IN AREAS SUCH AS SPECTRUM SHARING, INTEGRATED SENSING AND COMMUNICATIONS (ISAC), ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI), HETEROGENEOUS NETWORKING, AND SOFTWARE-DRIVEN NETWORKS TARGETING NEW APPLICATIONS AND USE CASES. THE PPO WILL PROVIDE STRATEGIC DIRECTION ON AREAS OF RESEARCH INVESTMENT, PROJECT MANAGEMENT SUPPORT, TESTING AND PLATFORM ENHANCEMENT RECOMMENDATIONS, AND EXTERNAL ENGAGEMENT WITH A WIDE RANGE OF STAKEHOLDERS ACROSS THE GOVERNMENT, INDUSTRY, AND ACADEMIA. THIS AWARD REFLECTS NSF'S STATUTORY MISSION AND HAS BEEN DEEMED WORTHY OF SUPPORT THROUGH EVALUATION USING THE FOUNDATION'S INTELLECTUAL MERIT AND BROADER IMPACTS REVIEW CRITERIA.- SUBAWARDS ARE NOT PLANNED FOR THIS AWARD.

**AWARDS ISSUED PRIOR TO JANUARY 20, 2025, WERE FUNDED UNDER PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATIONS AND MAY NOT REFLECT THE PRIORITIES AND POLICIES OF THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION.** RESIDENTIAL AND BUSINESS USERS IN LOW-DENSITY AREAS OF THE COUNTRY HAVE NOT RECEIVED THE SAME HIGH QUALITY, HIGH-SPEED SERVICES OFFERED TO URBAN USERS DUE IN PART TO THE COST OF DEPLOYING FIBER AND EXISTING WIRELESS TECHNOLOGIES ACROSS LONG DISTANCES. DESPITE REDUCTIONS IN THE COST OF FIBER BACKHAUL AND WIRELESS EQUIPMENT, HIGH DEPLOYMENT, OPERATIONS, AND MAINTENANCE COSTS TO REACH LOW-DENSITY AREAS CONTINUE TO PRESENT HIGHER COST-PER-BIT FOR BROADBAND SERVICES AND MORE LIMITED ACCESS THAN IN URBAN REGIONS. A MAJOR GOAL OF THIS PROJECT IS TO BUILD A LARGE-SCALE, NEXT GENERATION, WIRELESS, RESEARCH TESTBED FOCUSED ON IDENTIFYING WAYS TO REDUCE THE COST OF BROADBAND DELIVERY TO RURAL COMMUNITIES.THAT MEANS THAT THE RURAL PLATFORM MUST APPLY NEW TECHNOLOGIES TO TRANSFORM NETWORKS IN RURAL AND OTHER LOW-DENSITY GEOGRAPHIC AREAS IN AN EFFICIENT AND AFFORDABLE WAY. AS A LARGE-SCALE TESTBED, THE RURAL PLATFORM WILL TARGET ACADEMIC AND INDUSTRY RESEARCHERS, ENGINEERS, APPLICATION DEVELOPERS,AND END-USERS OF ADVANCED WIRELESS AND APPLICATION SYSTEMS AS PROSPECTIVE USERS. THESE US-BASED RESEARCHERS WILL BE PROVIDED REMOTE ACCESS TO THE RURAL PLATFORM. SINCE THERE IS LIKELY TO BE MULTIPLE TECHNICAL SOLUTIONS TO REDUCING THE COST, PLATFORM USERS/RESEARCHERS WILL HAVE THE OPTION AND ABILITY TO ADD THEIR OWN DEVICES TO TEST AND EVALUATE. TO DO SO, THE RURAL PLATFORM WILL FEATURE ARCHITECTURAL FLEXIBILITY AND DESIGN DIVERSITY TO SUPPORT NOVEL SOLUTIONS. IT IS EXPECTED THAT THE DATA COLLECTED (E.G., SPEED, BANDWIDTH, COSTS, ETC.) FROM THE RURAL PLATFORM WILL BE AN INVALUABLE RESOURCE FOR RESEARCHERS, EDUCATORS, AND GRADUATE/UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS ACROSS THE NATION, AS WELL HELPING TO INCREASE US-BASED WIRELESS EXPERTISE. IT IS ALSO EXPECTED THAT THE RURAL PLATFORM WILL ENABLE EXPERIMENTATION FOR WIRELESS TECHNOLOGIES SUCH AS AUTONOMOUS IRRIGATION MANAGEMENT, CONNECTED AND AUTOMATED AGRICULTURAL VEHICLES, AGRICULTURAL AND FIELD ROBOTS, PRECISION ANIMAL MONITORING, AND AUGMENTED AND VIRTUAL REALITY RURAL EDUCATION TO REVOLUTIONIZE AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES AND TO PROVIDE BASIC COMMUNITY SERVICES IN RURAL COMMUNITIES. THE OVERALL SOCIETAL BENEFIT IS FINDING AFFORDABLE OPTIONS, INCREASING ACCESSIBILITY, AND PROVIDING BETTER ACCESS TO ESSENTIAL WEB-BASED SERVICES IN RURAL COMMUNITIES.

GLOBAL CITIES TEAM CHALLENGE PARTNERSHIP

SMART CITY PROGRAM

2018 AND 2019 US IGNITE APPLICATION SUMMITS - BRIDGING ACADEMIC RESEARCH AND COMMUNITY STAKEHOLDERS FOR INCREASED IMPACT

EAGER: PATHWAYS TO SUSTAINABLE SUCCESS IN SMART AND CONNECTED COMMUNITIES -THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION SUPPORTS A WIDE VARIETY OF VALUABLE TECHNICAL AND SOCIAL CIVIC INNOVATION THROUGH ITS CIVIC INNOVATION CHALLENGE (CIVIC) AND SMART & CONNECTED COMMUNITIES (S&CC) PROGRAMS. WHILE MANY OF THE PROJECTS FUNDED THROUGH THESE EFFORTS HAVE SIGNIFICANT AND LONG-LASTING IMPACT IN MULTIPLE COMMUNITIES, OTHERS FAIL TO MAKE THE TRANSLATION INTO BEING SUSTAINABLE AND SCALABLE. THIS EAGER WILL EMPLOY A MULTI-STAGE PROCESS TO IDENTIFY THE COMBINATIONS OF FACTORS WHICH UNDERLIE SUCCESSFUL TRANSLATION AS WELL AS THOSE FACTORS WHICH CAN BE BARRIERS. THIS EAGER WILL ALSO EXPLORE SPECIFIC STEPS, INTERVENTIONS, AND RESOURCES WHICH CAN PROPEL MORE PROJECTS TO SUSTAINABLE, SCALABLE, AND LONG-TERM SUCCESS. AN IMPORTANT PART OF THIS RESEARCH IS CONNECTING INDIVIDUAL PROJECTS WITH WHAT MAY BE APPROPRIATE IDEAS, APPROACHES, AND RESOURCES, AS WELL AS DOCUMENTING THE PROCESS AND OUTCOMES. US IGNITE WILL WORK WITH NSF'S CIVIC AND S&CC PROJECT TEAMS TO PILOT PATHWAYS TO DEPLOY THEIR TECHNOLOGY AND POLICY OUTCOMES INTO LARGER-SCALE DEPLOYMENTS. US IGNITE WILL ANALYZE EXISTING NSF-FUNDED RESEARCH PROJECTS IN S&CC AND CIVIC TO DETERMINE SUITABILITY FOR SUSTAINABLE AND SUCCESSFUL DEPLOYMENT IN MULTIPLE COMMUNITIES. DEPLOYMENT MAY BE ACCOMPLISHED THROUGH A NUMBER OF PATHWAYS SUCH AS SPINNING OUT THE TECHNOLOGY TO A STARTUP, MAKING THE TECHNOLOGY AND/OR DATA AVAILABLE AS OPEN SOURCE FOR OTHERS TO USE, PROTECTING THE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY SO THAT IT RETAINS VALUE FOR A COMMITTED INDUSTRY PARTNER OR ALLIANCE, AND PROCUREMENT BY LOCAL GOVERNMENT. SOME OF THE PATHWAYS WILL LEVERAGE PARTNERS ALREADY PROVIDING THESE SERVICES. THIS EAGER WILL CONTRIBUTE TO A WIDER BODY OF KNOWLEDGE ON THE EVOLUTION OF INNOVATIVE, INCLUSIVE, AND EQUITABLE TECHNOLOGY DEPLOYMENT IN SMART COMMUNITIES AND THEIR SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC IMPLICATIONS. ABILITY TO POSITIVELY IMPACT EQUITY, INCLUSIVENESS OF DIVERSE POPULATIONS, COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, AND CIVIC TRUST WILL BE IMPORTANT COMPONENTS OF THE SUCCESS OF THIS EFFORT. THIS AWARD REFLECTS NSF'S STATUTORY MISSION AND HAS BEEN DEEMED WORTHY OF SUPPORT THROUGH EVALUATION USING THE FOUNDATION'S INTELLECTUAL MERIT AND BROADER IMPACTS REVIEW CRITERIA.

US IGNITE 2017 APPLICATION SUMMIT

EAGER: US IGNITE LAUNCH

EAGER: SMART COMMUNITY BIG DATA CO-OP

COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH: EAGER: REAL LEAFY - A SUSTAINABLE, VIRAL INFRASTRUCTURE-AS-A-SERVICE EDGE CLOUD

EAGER: US IGNITE: WIRELESS RESEARCH CONSORTIUM

GLOBAL CITIES TEAM CHALLENGE PARTNERSHIP

GLOBAL CITIES TEAM CHALLENGE PARTNERSHIP

US IGNITE 2015 APPLICATION SUMMIT

US IGNITE 2016 APPLICATION SUMMIT

US IGNITE 2014 APPLICATION SUMMIT

GLOBAL CITIES CHALLENGE SUPPORT

US IGNITE 2013 APPLICATION SUMMIT

NSF CLOUD FOR EVERYONE WORKSHOP

ONF US IGNITE WORKSHOP

US IGNITE NEXT GENERATION DEVELOPERS WORKSHOP