The University of Florida's Division of Sponsored Research received a $250,000 project grant from the Office of Naval Research (ONR) under the Basic and Applied Scientific Research program (CFDA 12.300), awarded May 1, 2026, with a completion date of April 30, 2029. The project, titled "Autonomy Learning from Heterogeneous Experiences (ALEX)," supports fundamental and applied research with potential applications to naval operations and Marine Corps capabilities. This three-year research initiative will be performed at the University of Florida's facilities in Gainesville, Florida.
The award falls within ONR's competitive, merit-based funding for research addressing critical technology development priorities, including artificial intelligence and autonomous systems. As a prominent research institution with demonstrated expertise in advanced computational modeling and AI-related research, the University of Florida will conduct the proposed research according to ONR's standard evaluation criteria: scientific and technical merit, naval relevance, institutional capabilities, investigator qualifications, and cost realism. The project aligns with the Office of Naval Research's mission to discover, develop, and deliver new technology and capability that provides decisive technological advantage to the Navy and Marine Corps.