NSF Encourages AI Agent Ecosystem Protocols via PESOSE Program

NSF Funding Opportunities

Published February 20th, 2026

Detected March 5th, 2026

Summary

The National Science Foundation (NSF) issued a Dear Colleague Letter encouraging proposals to its Pathways to Enable Secure Open-Source Ecosystems (PESOSE) program that focus on developing protocols for AI agent ecosystems. The letter highlights the importance of interoperability, scalability, and security in these emerging AI systems.

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What changed

This Dear Colleague Letter from the NSF encourages proposals to the PESOSE program specifically focusing on the development of protocols that enable Artificial Intelligence (AI) agent ecosystems. The NSF highlights the growing capabilities of AI agents and the critical need for open standards and shared protocols to ensure their communication, coordination, and interoperability across different platforms and organizations. The letter emphasizes the importance of scalability and robust security features, including identity verification, access control, and secure communication channels, within these AI agent ecosystems.

While this is not a binding regulation, it signals a strategic funding priority for the NSF. Researchers and technology companies involved in AI development, particularly those focused on open-source solutions and cybersecurity, should consider aligning their research proposals with the PESOSE program's objectives. The letter encourages collaborations among academic, nonprofit, and industry partners to advance these critical AI infrastructure components. No specific compliance deadlines or penalties are mentioned, as this is a funding opportunity announcement.

What to do next

Review NSF PESOSE program details for proposal submission guidelines.
Align research and development efforts with the stated priorities for AI agent ecosystem protocols, focusing on interoperability, scalability, and security.
Explore potential collaborations with academic, nonprofit, and industry partners for joint proposals.

Source document (simplified)

Dear Colleague Letter

Advancing Artificial Intelligence (AI) Agent Ecosystems through the National Science Foundation Pathways to Enable Secure Open-Source Ecosystems (NSF PESOSE) Program

Encourages NSF Pathways to Enable Secure Open-Source Ecosystems (NSF PESOSE) proposals that focus on the protocols enabling AI agent ecosystems.

February 20, 2026

Encourages NSF Pathways to Enable Secure Open-Source Ecosystems (NSF PESOSE) proposals that focus on the protocols enabling AI agent ecosystems.

Dear Colleague:

The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) encourages proposals to the Pathways to Enable Secure Open-Source Ecosystems (PESOSE) program that focus on protocols enabling AI agent ecosystems.

PESOSE program context

The PESOSE program strengthens open-source ecosystems that produce publicly accessible, modifiable, and shareable software and hardware, models and specifications, languages and measures for security and cybersecurity of artificial intelligence (AI) models and systems, metrology, data tools and benchmarking tools. These open ecosystems drive innovation across AI, cloud computing, finance, healthcare, education, manufacturing, mobility, and national security.

PESOSE supports the maturation of the organizations that manage open-source ecosystems by helping them distribute development and grow broad user and contributor communities across academia, industry, and government. The program also advances security and privacy by addressing vulnerabilities that affect how open ecosystems evolve.

AI agent protocol ecosystems

AI agents are moving beyond simple chat interfaces. They can operate for long periods, write and debug code, search databases, manage email and calendars, buy goods, and operate laboratory equipment. These capabilities rely on open interfaces and shared standards that allow agents to communicate with tools, data sources, and each other.

An AI agent ecosystem is a network of autonomous agents that communicate, coordinate, and work together using common protocols. These protocols let agents - built by different organizations or using different frameworks - smoothly share data, and perform tasks across different environments. They are essential for scalable, secure, and reproducible AI systems.

PESOSE and AI agent ecosystems

The U.S. has a long history of advancing open technology ecosystems and their enabling protocols. For example, early investments by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and NSF enabled the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) which became the industry standard for addressing, transmitting, and routing data across interconnected networks. Today TCP/IP is the backbone of the Internet.

This Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) highlights NSF’s interest in PESOSE proposals that similarly advance the protocols for AI agent ecosystems, strengthen open‑source foundations and support growth across sectors.

PESOSE welcomes proposals that advance one or more of the following:

Interoperability. Develop open standards so agents can work across platforms and organizations without custom connectors.
Scalability. Create architectures that support large networks of agents, tools, and services while keeping integration simple.
Security. Design interoperable protocols with security features that enable agent operation across heterogeneous security regimes. Include:
- Cross-domain data classification mapping,
- Identity verification,
- Role- and attribute-based access control enforcement,
- Secure, policy-compliant communication channels,
- Robust authentication and fine-grained authorization,
- Zero knowledge proofs,
- End-to-end auditability, and
- Formally specified, safe message formats.
Open Science Applications. Demonstrate and evaluate security features in AI ecosystem protocols that enable open science. ****
Partnerships. Build collaborations among academic, nonprofit, industry, and government partners to accelerate appropriate adoption.
Education and Training. Expand training for students and postdoctoral researchers to contribute to AI agent ecosystems, including security and reliability. NSF will give strong consideration to proposals that address these priorities. Research must remain unclassified and publicly releasable.

Proposal Submission

When responding to this DCL, please title your proposal: “PESOSE / AI: Track #: (title)”.

Proposals must follow the requirements in the NSF Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPPG) and the NSF PESOSE solicitation. NSF will evaluate proposals submitted in response to this DCL based on their alignment with the goals above.

For details, consult the full PESOSE solicitation and/or website.

Questions may be sent to: PESOSE@nsf.gov.

Sincerely,

Erwin Gianchandani
Assistant Director for Technology, Innovation and Partnerships