OpenAI has announced a $1 million grant program to support 14 independent research projects exploring how artificial intelligence can enhance economic opportunity and strengthen societal resilience. The selected projects, chosen from over 400 proposals, will run for six months and are expected to yield results in 2027.
The initiative is part of OpenAI's commitment to supporting external research and policy development, as outlined in its April 2026 paper, 'Industrial Policy for the Intelligence Age'. In addition to the $1 million in direct grants, OpenAI is offering up to $1 million in API credits to the cohort, bringing the total potential commitment to $2 million.
Research Focus
The 14 projects are divided into two
Organizations involved in the projects include the American Enterprise Institute and the Nuclear Threat Initiative. The selection of projects signals significant demand from the research community for this kind of funding, and the API credits from OpenAI could enable researchers to run more complex experiments.