NSF Launches First Quad-Supported Grants

Current Context: On 12 February 2026, the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) announced the first grants under the Quad‑supported AI‑ENGAGE initiative.

• The collaboration involves U.S., Australia (CSIRO), India (ICAR), and Japan (JST).
• NSF is funding $2.4 million, with combined Quad support exceeding $6 million.
• Six international projects were selected to apply AI, robotics, sensors, and computer vision in agriculture.
• Each project must include researchers from at least three Quad nations.
• The aim is to modernize agriculture, empower farmers, and build resilience against climate change and food insecurity.

Question:

Q.1 How much funding is the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) contributing to the first cohort of awards under AI-ENGAGE?
a) $4 million
b) $6 million
c) $2.4 million
d) $10 million

Answer: c) NSF is providing $2.4 million directly to U.S. lead researchers, while the total combined Quad funding exceeds $6 million (with ~$4 million from other partners).