Notice2026-10779
NIST Artificial Intelligence Consortium
Primary source
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Published
May 29, 2026
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Institute of Standards and Technology
Abstract
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), an agency of the United States Department of Commerce, previously announced the formation of the Artificial Intelligence Safety Institute Consortium ("AISIC") through a publication dated November 2, 2023 (88 FR 75276). AISIC brought together more than 280 organizations to develop science-based and empirically backed guidelines and standards for artificial intelligence (AI) measurement, laying a foundation for global AI metrology. Through this succeeding notice, NIST is announcing the retitling of AISIC as the NIST Artificial Intelligence Consortium ("Consortium"), revising the scope of the Consortium's research, and reissuing its invitation to organizations to submit letters of interest in order to collaborate with NIST, non-profit organizations, industry leaders, universities, and other agencies of the Federal Government in addressing the challenges associated with the development and deployment of AI-based innovations. In support of NIST's directives under the National Artificial Intelligence Initiative Act of 2020 (Pub. L. 116-283), in accordance with Executive Order 14179 issued January 23, 2025 (Removing Barriers to American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence), and as mandated by America's AI Action Plan, issued July 2025, NIST will utilize the Consortium to empower the collaborative establishment of a new measurement science that will enable the identification of proven, scalable, and interoperable techniques and metrics to promote the development and use of AI. Interested organizations should describe the technical expertise and products, data, and/or models that they will bring to the Consortium to support the Consortium's collaborative research activities. Participation in the Consortium is open to all interested organizations that can contribute their expertise, products, data, and/or models to the Consortium activities. Selected participants will be required to enter into a Consortium Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with NIST. At NIST's discretion, entities that are not legally permitted to enter into CRADAs pursuant to law may be allowed to participate in the Consortium under a separate non-CRADA agreement. Organizations that are already members of the Consortium ("Consortium Members") are not required to reapply to NIST but may be asked to sign amendments to their current agreements with NIST that reflect the refocused direction of the Consortium.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 103 (Friday, May 29, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 103 (Friday, May 29, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32007-32009]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-10779]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Institute of Standards and Technology
[Docket No.: NIST 2026-0034]
RIN 0693-XC138
NIST Artificial Intelligence Consortium
AGENCY: National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST),
Department of Commerce.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), an
agency of the United States Department of Commerce, previously
announced the formation of the Artificial Intelligence Safety Institute
Consortium (``AISIC'') through a publication dated November 2, 2023 (88
FR 75276). AISIC brought together more than 280 organizations to
develop science-based and empirically backed guidelines and standards
for artificial intelligence (AI) measurement, laying a foundation for
global AI metrology. Through this succeeding notice, NIST is announcing
the retitling of AISIC as the NIST Artificial Intelligence Consortium
(``Consortium''), revising the scope of the Consortium's research, and
reissuing its invitation to organizations to submit letters of interest
in order to collaborate with NIST, non-profit organizations, industry
leaders, universities, and other agencies of the Federal Government in
addressing the challenges associated with the development and
deployment of AI-based innovations. In support of NIST's directives
under the National Artificial Intelligence Initiative Act of 2020 (Pub.
L. 116-283), in accordance with Executive Order 14179 issued January
23, 2025 (Removing Barriers to American Leadership in Artificial
Intelligence), and as mandated by America's AI Action Plan, issued July
2025, NIST will utilize the Consortium to empower the collaborative
establishment of a new measurement science that will enable the
identification of proven, scalable, and interoperable techniques and
metrics to promote the development and use of AI. Interested
organizations should describe the technical expertise and products,
data, and/or models that they will bring to the Consortium to support
the Consortium's collaborative research activities. Participation in
the Consortium is open to all interested organizations that can
contribute their expertise, products, data, and/or models to the
Consortium activities. Selected participants will be required to enter
into a Consortium Cooperative Research and Development Agreement
(CRADA) with NIST. At NIST's discretion, entities that are not legally
permitted to enter into CRADAs pursuant to law may be allowed to
participate in the Consortium under a separate non-CRADA agreement.
Organizations that are already members of the Consortium (``Consortium
Members'') are not required to reapply to NIST but may be asked to sign
amendments to their current agreements with NIST that reflect the
refocused direction of the Consortium.
DATES: The Consortium's collaborative research activities are ongoing.
NIST will accept letters of interest from new organizations to
participate in this Consortium on an ongoing basis with regular periods
of review for new applicants, likely occurring biannually. The first
period of review will begin within 60 days of the publication of this
notice, and selection determinations will subsequently be communicated
to applicants. Existing Consortium Members will not be required to
submit new letters of interest but may be asked to sign amendments to
their current agreements within a similar timeframe.
ADDRESSES: Completed letters of interest may be submitted via the
letter of interest webform at <a href="https://www.nist.gov/artificial-intelligence/artificial-intelligence-consortium/LOI">https://www.nist.gov/artificial-intelligence/artificial-intelligence-consortium/LOI</a>, by email to
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#315058525e5f425e434558445c715f5842451f565e47"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="a5c4ccc6cacbd6cad7d1ccd0c8e5cbccd6d18bc2cad3">[email protected]</span></a>, or with a hardcopy to: National Institute of
Standards and Technology, 100 Bureau Drive, Mail Stop 8900,
Gaithersburg, MD 20899. Organizations whose letters of interest are
accepted in accordance with the process set forth in the SUPPLEMENTARY
INFORMATION section of this notice will be asked to sign a Consortium
Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with NIST. The
Consortium CRADA template will be made available to selected applicants
by NIST's Technology Partnerships Office (TPO).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: J'aime Maynard, Consortia Agreements
Officer, NIST's Technology Partnerships Office (TPO), by email to
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#0766607562626a6269737447696e747329606871"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="fd9c9a8f9898909893898ebd93948e89d39a928b">[email protected]</span></a> or by mail to 100 Bureau Drive, Mail Stop 2200,
Gaithersburg, MD 20899. Please direct all media inquiries to NIST's
Public Affairs Office (PAO) by email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#8fe6e1fefae6fdf6cfe1e6fcfba1e8e0f9"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="c0a9aeb1b5a9b2b980aea9b3b4eea7afb6">[email protected]</span></a> or by phone at
(301) 975-2762.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background: NIST supports the United States in developing standards
around emerging technologies, including AI and AI-related systems. In
2019, President Trump issued the first ever Executive Order on AI (E.O.
13859, Maintaining American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence) (84
FR 3967, February 14, 2019), recognizing that American leadership in AI
is of paramount importance to maintaining the economic and national
security of the United States. Through Executive Order 14179 (Removing
Barriers to American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence) (90 FR
8741, January 23, 2025), President Trump directed the development of an
AI Action Plan to sustain and enhance America's global AI dominance in
order to promote human flourishing, economic competitiveness, and
national security. Released in July 2025, America's AI Action Plan
instructs NIST to convene this Consortium to empower the collaborative
establishment of new measurement science that will enable the
identification of proven, scalable, and interoperable techniques and
metrics to promote the development of AI.
[[Page 32008]]
Consistent with this directive, the National Artificial
Intelligence Initiative Act of 2020 charged NIST with, inter alia:
<bullet> Advancing collaborative frameworks, standards, guidelines,
and associated methods and techniques for AI.
<bullet> Supporting development of technical standards and
guidelines that promote deployment and use of AI systems.
<bullet> Conducting stakeholder outreach.
This Consortium was first announced by NIST in November 2023 and
began its collaborative research activities in 2024. Originally
organized into five working groups, the Consortium provided a hub for
interested parties to work together in building and maturing a
measurement science for trustworthy and responsible AI. Through this
current notice, NIST is announcing changes to the organization and
structure of the Consortium that will create a greater agility and
capacity to initiate and manage projects within the scope of the
Consortium's collaborative research plan.
Through the Consortium, NIST will: support work to ensure that
frontier AI technology protects free speech and American values;
encourage open-source and open-weight AI; enable AI adoption; invest in
AI-enabled science; invest in AI interpretability, control, and
robustness breakthroughs; build an AI evaluations ecosystem; protect
commercial and government AI innovations; promote secure-by-design AI
technologies and applications; and ensure that the U.S. Government is
at the forefront of evaluating national security risks in frontier
models.
Process: NIST is soliciting responses from all sources of relevant
technical capabilities (see below) to enter into a Consortium
Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) to provide
technical expertise and products, data, and/or models to enable
innovation, standardization, and interoperability within AI systems.
The full project can be viewed at: <a href="https://www.nist.gov/artificial-intelligence/artificial-intelligence-consortium">https://www.nist.gov/artificial-intelligence/artificial-intelligence-consortium</a>.
Interested parties can submit a letter of interest by visiting the
project website at <a href="https://www.nist.gov/artificial-intelligence/artificial-intelligence-consortium/LOI">https://www.nist.gov/artificial-intelligence/artificial-intelligence-consortium/LOI</a> and completing the letter of
interest webform; alternatively, parties can answer the questions
detailed in LETTER OF INTEREST, below, and send via email or hardcopy
(for reference, see ADDRESSES section above). NIST will contact
interested parties if there are questions regarding the responsiveness
of the letters of interest to the project objective or requirements
identified below. NIST will select participants who have submitted
complete letters of interest on a first come, first served basis.
Selected participants will be required to enter into a Consortium CRADA
with NIST. At NIST's discretion, entities that are not legally
permitted to enter into CRADAs pursuant to law may be allowed to
participate in the Consortium pursuant to separate non-CRADA
agreements.
Project Objective: Artificial intelligence is a revolutionary
technology with the potential to transform the global economy and alter
the balance of power in the world. To encourage even more extraordinary
AI technological innovations, NIST is expanding its AI measurement
efforts by harnessing the broader community's interests and
capabilities. NIST aims to help enable the identification of proven,
scalable, and interoperable measurements and methodologies to promote
the development and use of AI.
Building upon its long track record of working with the private and
public sectors and its history of reliable and practical measurement
and standards-oriented solutions, NIST seeks research collaborators who
can support this vital undertaking. Specifically, NIST looks to:
<bullet> Create a convening space for Consortium Members to engage
in informed dialogue and research and development collaborations,
striving for open and transparent partnerships;
<bullet> Bring together stakeholders from both the public and
private sectors, as well as strategic international organizations, to
work collaboratively to build and mature a new measurement science for
secure AI;
<bullet> Develop science-based and empirically backed guidelines
and standards for AI measurement, laying the foundation for AI
innovation;
<bullet> Support U.S. readiness in accelerating the development of
next generation AI systems, from frontier models to new applications
and approaches, with appropriate risk management strategies;
<bullet> Align capability evaluations of AI systems and facilitate
the creation and use of AI testbeds and test environments; and
<bullet> Build the foundations and documentation for AI standards
generation.
To create a lasting approach for continued joint research and
development, NIST will engage stakeholders via this Consortium. The
work of the Consortium will be open and transparent, consistent with
applicable security requirements, and provide a hub for interested
parties to work together in building and maturing a measurement science
for AI.
NIST has identified a number of focus areas around which to
organize the scope of the Consortium's activities. These include
domain-specific application areas that were selected based upon current
domestic priorities, alongside additional areas focusing on measurement
science and technology with broad applications that underpin the
innovation, development, and adoption of AI technologies.
[ssquf] ChemBio
[ssquf] Healthcare
[ssquf] Law Enforcement/Forensic Science
[ssquf] Energy
[ssquf] Agriculture
[ssquf] Communication
[ssquf] Cybersecurity
[ssquf] Privacy Engineering
[ssquf] High-Security AI Data Centers
[ssquf] Authenticating Digital Content
[ssquf] Post-Deployment Monitoring
[ssquf] Automation
[ssquf] Evaluation Methods
Activities of the Consortium are subject to change based upon NIST
and U.S. Government priorities and as advances in the technical state
of the art open new avenues for scientific inquiry and collaboration.
The complete list of ongoing Consortium activities with its goals and
outcomes will be made available to the Consortium Members.
If NIST and eligible Consortium Members wish to undertake or
develop results in areas relating to national security, such eligible
Consortium Members may participate in separate research groups under
terms and conditions that vary from those of the Consortium CRADA. The
decision of whether or not to participate in a separate national
security related research group will not affect any Consortium Members'
standing in or ability to participate in any other Task Group.
Eligible Consortium Members that wish to undertake or develop
results in areas related to national security concerns, including
information that may be classified, will be subject to appropriate risk
management strategies and research security requirements. Those
requirements will be determined after the launch of the Consortium, if
such opportunities arise. All determinations of eligibility for
participation in national-security related areas will be at the sole
discretion of NIST at the relevant time.
Consortium Members will be expected to contribute:
<bullet> Technical expertise in one or more of the following areas:
[[Page 32009]]
[cir] Data and data documentation
[cir] AI Metrology
[cir] AI Governance
[cir] AI security vulnerabilities
[cir] AI system design and development
[cir] AI system deployment
[cir] Test, Evaluation, Validation, and Verification methodologies
[cir] AI Explainability and Interpretability
[cir] Workforce skills
[cir] Psychometrics
[cir] Economic analysis
<bullet> Models, data, and/or products to support and demonstrate
pathways to enable AI systems development
<bullet> Infrastructure support for Consortium projects
<bullet> Facility space and organizational support to host Consortium
Members for workshops and conferences
Requirements for Letters of Interest
Each responding organization's letter of interest should include
the address, point of contact, and the following information:
1. The role(s) the organization might play in the Consortium's
efforts.
2. The specific expertise the organization intends to bring to the
Consortium.
3. The products, services, data, or other technical capabilities
the organization will use in or contribute to Consortium activities.
Letters of interest should not include proprietary information.
NIST will not treat any information provided in response to this notice
as proprietary information.
NIST cannot guarantee that all submissions will be utilized or that
the products proposed by respondents will be used in Consortium
activities. Each prospective participant will be expected to work
collaboratively with NIST staff and other project participants under
the terms of the Consortium CRADA.
(Authority: 15 U.S.C. 3710a, 15 U.S.C. 278h-1, and 15 U.S.C. 272b
and 272c)
Alicia Chambers,
NIST Executive Secretariat.
[FR Doc. 2026-10779 Filed 5-28-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P
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