U.S. National Science Foundation · United States

Foundational Research in Robotics (FRR)

Open

Eligible applicant types include unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility".

Deadline: Not published yet — check the official call
Grant amount: Not stated — see the official call
Funding rate: No mandatory cost sharing stated; funding percentage not stated
Cost sharing: Not required
Likely applicant types: Companies, SMEs / start-ups, Non-profits, Universities & research, Public bodies, Individuals From source categories or programme rules; the call decides.
Funder: U.S. National Science Foundation
Reference: PD-20-144Y
Assistance listing: 47.041 Engineering
Last checked: 13 Nov 2026

Open the official call ↗

About this call

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.

Read the full text

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.

Who can apply

Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility"

Applicant categories are a starting point. The official call decides eligibility.

Topics

Science and Technology and other Research and Development

Timing

Proposals accepted anytime

How to apply

Apply through the funder’s official page (link below); it states the procedure, documents and deadline.

From the call text

Who can apply: Not stated in the call text we hold — check the official page
Company stage: Not stated in the call text we hold — check the official page
Single applicant or consortium: Not stated in the call text we hold — check the official page
Where applicants must be based: Not stated in the call text we hold — check the official page
Where to apply: Not stated in the call text we hold — check the official page

Contact

U.S. National Science Foundation · grantsgovsupport@nsf.gov · 703-292-4203

Where these facts come from

Fact	Value	How we know	Taken from the source
Deadline	Unknown — not stated in the source we hold	unknown	—
Amount per applicant	Unknown — not stated in the source we hold	unknown	—
Total budget	Unknown — not stated in the source we hold	unknown	—
Funding rate	No mandatory cost sharing stated; funding percentage not stated	read from the official text	15 Nov 2026
Who can apply	Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility"	official data field	15 Nov 2026
Where to apply	Unknown — not stated in the source we hold	unknown	—

Official sources

Official call page · Funder's programme page

Facts on this page come from the official source and were last checked 13 Nov 2026. The funder's own documents, including later amendments, always take precedence.