Standing within the hallowed halls of the U.S. Capitol Advanced throughout IEEE-USA’s Congressional Visits Day on 9 April, representing the collective voice of 150,000 devoted U.S. members, was an expertise that resonated with me.
A daylong occasion, CVD 2025 drew a formidable turnout of 329 individuals from 39 states, culminating in 240 impactful conferences with U.S. legislators and their workers. As a part of the Texas group, I participated in 4 essential discussions.
The occasion was pivotal, with the potential to assist form the way forward for innovation and expertise within the United States. Partaking instantly with lawmakers, together with esteemed IEEE leaders and members who’re specialists of their fields, introduced important points impacting our discipline into sharp focus. I left with a renewed sense of urgency and goal.
Funding federal scientific establishments
Some of the compelling points of our discussions underscored the very important function of sustained funding beneath the fiscal yr 2026 appropriations price range by means of strategic investments in key federal analysis establishments such because the Energy Department’s Office of Science, the Defense Department’s Basic and Applied Research, NASA, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the National Science Foundation (NSF).
Having witnessed the groundbreaking expertise and innovation-driven work emanating from these establishments and the elemental discoveries that usually seed transformative applied sciences, it’s clear to me that constant funding could be not simply useful but in addition important for sustaining the nation’s scientific and technological edge.
To contemplate diminishing the assist within the present world panorama could be a detrimental step backward.
Funding applications for small companies
Equally essential was advocating for the reauthorization of the Small Business Innovation Researchand Small Business Technology Transferapplications. The initiatives are extra than simply funding mechanisms; they’re catalysts for ingenuity, empowering small companies and supporting nimble innovators as they translate cutting-edge concepts into concrete industrial merchandise.
The SBIR and STTR applications are administered by the U.S. Small Business Administration, and 11 federal businesses take part in them. Congress should reauthorize funding for this yr. The applications assist roughly 4,000 companies to the tune of about US $4 billion yearly.
Their continued vitality is paramount as a result of small companies foster a dynamic ecosystem whereby trickle-down advantages considerably contribute to job creation and economic growth along with selling innovation.
One dialog that struck a chord with me was on democratizing AI sources by means of the Creating Resources for Every American to Experiment With Artificial Intelligence (CREATE AI) Act. The proposal would completely set up the National AI Research Resource pilot program, led by the NSF in coordination with the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy in partnership with federal and personal organizations. It’s a cloud computing useful resource that leverages the Energy Department’s computational property together with the Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Summit supercomputer.
The CREATE AI Act’s imaginative and prescient of shared nationwide infrastructure for the analysis group may stage the enjoying discipline, enabling wider participation within the expertise’s innovation and guaranteeing its advantages attain all sectors of society. It isn’t nearly technological development; it’s about equitable entry to future-defining sources.
Tutorial analysis is a high supply for cited AI analysis, instantly benefiting trade and even contributing to life-saving medication—which highlights a symbiotic relationship that should be nurtured.
The trade traits we mentioned with politicians function highly effective proof for our calls to motion.
“We, as engineers, scientists, and innovators, have an important function to play in educating and advocating for insurance policies that can foster a thriving ecosystem of innovation.”
The exponential rise in Food and Drug Administration-approved AI-based medical devices—from six in 2015 to greater than 220 in 2023—isn’t only a statistic. It represents a revolution in health care, providing the potential for extra correct diagnoses, extra personalised therapies, and saved lives. Equally, the decrease hardware costs fueling broader AI adoption throughout numerous sectors, together with autonomous driverless vehicles and supply-chain optimization, sign a profound financial transformation on the horizon.
The compelling information the IEEE individuals shared from Stanford’s 2025 AI Index Report confirmed a staggering 280 occasions drop in AI mannequin inference prices in two years, from November 2022 to October 2024. The findings paint a transparent image: AI is not a distant frontier however an more and more accessible software.
A legislative aide, after listening to that statistic, remarked on the necessity to plan for the vitality necessities and the diversified sources that could possibly be leveraged, together with nuclear energy.
It might be a missed alternative of serious scientific, financial, and strategic consequence if the momentum shouldn’t be leveraged for the nation’s profit.
Strengthening STEM roots
We should proceed to champion strengthening the science, expertise, engineering, and mathematics expertise pipeline by means of sturdy funding and sustained assist for the 2022 CHIPS and Science Act. The nation’s potential to steer in expertise hinges on the subsequent technology of expert professionals.
To that finish, it’s essential that the US develop the employment-based immigrant visa program for extremely expert, certified people to make sure a sustained provide of expertise required for trade and academia by means of laws such because the Keep STEM Talent Act. My very own experiences, together with my engagement with Northwestern University and its STEM master of engineering management program advisory board, have underscored the important hyperlink between academia and trade.
Witnessing the bipartisan engagement and the real curiosity from lawmakers and their workers final month, together with influential figures serving on key congressional committees, was inspiring. It underscored that the significance of technological innovation transcends political divides. The engagement should translate into concrete motion in Congress and by the administration.
My expertise on Capitol Hill was greater than only a privilege; it was a stark reminder of our collective duty.
The way forward for U.S. technological management shouldn’t be a passive end result. It calls for energetic engagement between a number of stakeholders and unwavering assist from our policymakers.
We, as engineers, scientists, and innovators, have an important function to play in educating and advocating for insurance policies that can foster a thriving ecosystem of innovation.
The time for congressional intervention is now. We can not afford to be complacent. The worldwide panorama is quickly evolving, and sustaining U.S. management in expertise is dependent upon strategic investments and forward-thinking insurance policies.
For U.S. lawmakers, the significance of present technological adjustments serves as a name to motion. The elected officers have a duty to make sure the US stays on the forefront of technological development for generations to return.
My expertise final month on Capitol Hill strengthened the facility of our collective voice, and I’m grateful to IEEE-USA for the esteemed alternative to take part.
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