NSF Trailblazer Engineering Impact Award (TRAILBLAZER)

The NSF Trailblazer Engineering Impact Award (TRAILBLAZER) program supports individual investigators who propose novel research projects with the potential to innovatively and creatively address new areas of fundamental or applied research, catalyze development of new industries or capabilities that increase the leadership position for the country, and/or make significant progress towards addressing a national need or grand challenge, particularly in current priority areas including artificial intelligence (AI), bioengineering, quantum engineering, robotics, and nuclear engineering. TRAILBLAZER will support engineers and scientists who leverage their distinctive track record of innovation and creativity to pursue new research directions that are distinct from their previous or current research areas. A distinctive feature of the TRAILBLAZER program is that the PI must demonstrate how their track record of innovation and creativity will be uniquely leveraged to pursue new research directions that are distinct from their previous or current research areas. TRAILBLAZER PIs are expected to develop a compelling vision for the proposed research and lead an effective team to conduct the proposed research activities. All funded TRAILBLAZER projects will form an NSF TRAILBLAZER cohort, and principal investigators will be expected to participate in an annual meeting.