New NSF Program Cultivates the Future of NextG Networks

Competitiveness in advanced telecommunications technologies is critical to American innovation and national security. The National Science Foundation (NSF) recently announced the new Verticals-enabling Intelligent NEtwork Systems (VINES) program to foster U.S. leadership in advanced telecommunications and foster innovative real-world applications.

NSF Acting Assistant Director of Computer and Information Science and Engineering Ellen Zegura says that VINES is focused on advanced technologies like artificial intelligence, which will bring significant advantages in cost reduction and improved network reliability and availability through automation of processes. AI-native networks, Zegura adds, create more “capable” networks, which open the door for new use of wireless networks.

Zegura also discusses the collaborative aspect of the program. VINES brings together industry leaders like Intel and Qualcomm with federal agencies, as well as partnerships with the governments of Finland, Japan, India and Sweden. This global collaboration leverages resources and strengthens network operation and interoperability across national boundaries, which are often vulnerable points, Zegura explained.