Senate Reintroduces Bipartisan CREATE AI Act to Codify National AI Research Resource

A bipartisan group of senators reintroduced the Creating Resources for Every American to Experiment with Artificial Intelligence (CREATE AI) Act on April 29, seeking to codify the National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource (NAIRR) as a permanent, congressionally authorized infrastructure. The bill is led by Sens. Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Todd Young (R-IN), Mike Rounds (R-SD), and Cory Booker (D-NJ), and follows a companion House bill introduced in 2025. 

The NAIRR was originally launched in pilot form by the National Science Foundation in 2024 following a Biden executive order. Despite President Trump subsequently revoking that order, the NAIRR pilot has remained operational. The CREATE AI Act would place the resource on a statutory footing, establishing it formally within NSF’s Office of Advanced Cyber Infrastructure and directing it to be operated by a competitively selected nongovernmental entity. 

If enacted, the NAIRR would provide U.S. researchers, educators, and students at universities, nonprofits, and federal agencies with access to computational resources, curated AI datasets, an AI data commons, educational tools, and AI testbeds developed in partnership with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Supporters argue the resource is critical to broadening AI participation beyond a small number of large technology companies that currently dominate AI research infrastructure. 

“The United States cannot cede leadership in AI development to China,” said Sen. Young. “For both our economic and national security, we must harness AI’s potential and mitigate its risks.” 

The legislation has garnered broad industry support, including from the AI Policy Network, the Information Technology Industry Council, Cognizant, and SeedAI. A full committee markup session for the House version of the bill is scheduled, and the Senate Commerce Committee is expected to take up the legislation in the coming weeks. 

Read more from Sen. Heinrich’s press release.