Quantum Leap Challenge Institutes | 24 599

NSF Quantum Leap Challenge Institutes (QLCI) - FAQs

1) What is the NSF Quantum Leap Challenge Institutes (QLCI) opportunity?

The Quantum Leap Challenge Institutes (QLCI) opportunity is a National Science Foundation (NSF) program that supports large, coordinated, interdisciplinary research institutes focused on major, high-impact challenges in quantum information science and technology (QIST). The program is designed to fund institute-scale efforts that achieve more than a collection of smaller, disconnected projects by building sustained, synergistic collaboration across multiple institutions and disciplines.

2) What is the main purpose of QLCI funding?

The main purpose is to create and support research institutes that can drive breakthroughs at the leading edge of QIST while also building the broader ecosystem needed for quantum technologies to mature. QLCI institutes are expected to integrate research, technology development, and community-building into a unified plan to accelerate progress and amplify impact.

3) What kinds of research areas does QLCI focus on?

QLCI institutes are expected to advance foundational and enabling areas of quantum information science and technology, including quantum computation, quantum communication, quantum simulation, and quantum sensing.

4) What makes a QLCI institute different from a typical multi-project research effort?

QLCI emphasizes institute-scale coordination and sustained collaboration across institutions and disciplines. The intent is to generate clear added value through synergy: the combined effort should accelerate discovery and technology progress in ways that would not occur without an institute structure.

5) What is the program expecting from institutes beyond research results?

Beyond research, institutes are expected to build the connective tissue around quantum research by integrating technology development, partnerships, infrastructure, education and training, workforce development, outreach, and broader community engagement into the institute plan.

6) How important are education, training, and workforce development in QLCI?

They are central expectations. QLCI institutes are expected to provide meaningful education and training embedded in cutting-edge research and to deliver workforce development that supports long-term US leadership in QIST.

7) Does QLCI require collaboration across institutions and disciplines?

Yes. The program is explicitly designed around coordinated, interdisciplinary institute structures. Proposals are expected to show strong internal coordination across participating organizations and disciplines, and clear external engagement with the broader research and innovation community.

8) Are partnerships and infrastructure considered optional components?

No. The solicitation emphasizes that partnerships, infrastructure, industry engagement, outreach, and related ecosystem-building activities are part of how an institute demonstrates it can accelerate progress and amplify impact beyond what would happen without the institute structure.

9) Does QLCI encourage industry engagement?

Yes. Proposals are expected to encourage industry engagement as part of building the broader quantum ecosystem and stimulating new applications of quantum technologies.

10) Is international collaboration allowed under QLCI?

International collaboration is described as something institutes can enable when appropriate. Additionally, if a proposal includes funding for an international branch campus of a US Institution of Higher Education (including through subawards or consultants), the proposal must clearly justify why work at that branch campus benefits the project and why those activities cannot be performed at the US campus.

11) Can QLCI funding be used to continue an existing institute, or is it only for new institutes?

The program can fund either the continuation of existing QLCIs or the creation and operation of new institutes. In both cases, proposers follow the same institute proposal preparation guidance described in the solicitation.

12) Who is eligible to apply for this opportunity?

Eligibility is limited to US Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs), including accredited two- and four-year colleges and universities (including community colleges) that have a campus located in the United States and submit proposals on behalf of their faculty.

13) Are community colleges eligible under QLCI?

Yes. The eligibility description explicitly includes accredited two- and four-year colleges and universities, including community colleges, as long as the institution has a campus located in the United States and submits on behalf of its faculty.

14) Where must proposals be submitted within NSF?

Although QLCI is a crosscutting NSF program, proposals must be submitted to the Office of Strategic Initiatives (OSI) within the Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences (MPS).

15) Who manages awards after a proposal is selected?

Awards are managed by a cross-disciplinary team of NSF Program Directors, reflecting the expectation that institutes will span multiple fields and communities.

16) What national priorities does QLCI align with?

The program aligns with national priorities established by the National Quantum Initiative (NQI) Act (Public Law 115-368) and guidance in the NQI Advisory Committee report on sustaining US leadership in QIST. The opportunity explicitly emphasizes research, engineering, technology development, and pathways toward application and commercialization.

17) What is the funding instrument for this opportunity?

The funding instrument is a grant.

18) How many awards does NSF expect to make under this opportunity?

The opportunity listing indicates an expected number of about 10 awards.

19) What is the award ceiling listed for QLCI?

The listing provides an award ceiling of $45,000,000.

20) What is the opportunity number for this NSF solicitation?

The opportunity number is 24-599.

21) What is the closing date shown for the opportunity?

The original closing date is September 17, 2025.

22) How is this opportunity categorized?

The opportunity is categorized as discretionary in the listing.

23) Which agency is offering this grant opportunity?

The opportunity is offered by the National Science Foundation (NSF).

24) What CFDA numbers are associated with this opportunity, and what do they indicate?

The opportunity is associated with multiple CFDA numbers (47.041, 47.049, 47.070, 47.074, 47.076, 47.084). The listing indicates this reflects the program’s multidisciplinary scope.

25) What kinds of outcomes or impacts are institutes expected to pursue?

Institutes are expected to pursue ambitious scientific and engineering goals that advance QIST and address important bottlenecks that hinder practical development and use of quantum technologies. They are also expected to stimulate new applications, support outreach, build partnerships, and contribute to pathways toward application and commercialization.

26) What does QLCI mean by "added value" coordination?

The solicitation emphasizes coordination that creates clear added value both internally (across institute participants) and externally (through engagement with the wider research and innovation community). In practice, this means the institute structure should enable progress and impact beyond what individual, stand-alone projects could achieve.

27) If a proposal includes an international branch campus of a US IHE, what explanation is required?

The proposal must clearly explain why conducting work at that international branch campus benefits the project and why the activities cannot be performed at the US campus. This requirement applies whether the branch campus involvement is funded directly, via subawards, or through consultants.