Will Support Fundamental R&D That Transforms Ability to Forecast Pandemic-scale Events, Detect Outbreaks Early, and Respond Efficiently

Despite decades of research, scientists do not fully understand the dynamic nature of pathogens and disease emergence. Effective responses to emerging pathogens will require sustained, global-scale efforts of researchers and organizations.

NSF’s Predictive Intelligence for Pandemic Prevention (PIPP) initiative focuses on fundamental research and development activities needed to tackle grand challenges in infectious disease pandemics through prediction and prevention. The PIPP Phase II Centers Program expands upon the Phase I Development Grant Program and is the NSF’s flagship program to establish a network of centers or large-scale awards/investments that will support interdisciplinary team-based approaches to accelerate research and development activities in emerging infectious diseases and pandemics.

The program invites proposals for Centers that have a principal focus in one of the following multidisciplinary themes: 

• Pre-emergence – Predicting and detecting rare events in complex, dynamical systems.
• Data, AI/ML and Design – Computing, manufacturing, and technology innovation for pandemics.
• The Host as the Universe – Identifying host-pathogen tipping points that dictate control or spread of an infection.
• Human Systems – The role of human behavior, activities and environments in disease emergence, transmission, and response or mitigation.

NSF plans to make approximately 4-7 Center awards for between $15 million and $18 million for seven years across the themes, depending on strength of submissions.

Letters of intent are due August 25, 2023. Full proposals are due December 8, 2023.

What Goes into a PIPP Center?

Each PIPP Phase II Center is envisioned as a catalytic force that:

• Builds a deeper understanding of critical foundational research issues that are critical in predictive intelligence for pandemic prevention.
• Innovates in a multitude of science and engineering fields within each theme, including, but not limited to: environmental, biological, social, behavioral, economic, mathematical, computer and information science and engineering science.
• Provides use-inspired insights to critical problems relating to predictive intelligence for pandemic prevention that accelerate translation of research results to practice with societal impact.

Successful Centers are motivated by clear and compelling foundational and interdisciplinary research questions and pursue activities that are focused on one of the themes above.  Each Center also will have interacting initial components that reach beyond the foundational research questions. Chiefly, Centers should accelerate the transition of innovations into relevant economic and/or policy sectors, and nurture and grow the next generation of talent necessary to respond to future pandemic challenges. Hence, center activities must include workforce development at all participant levels, a culture of diversity and inclusion where all participants gain mutual benefit.