U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy has announced the selection of 15 semi-finalist teams in the Advanced Research Projects Agency - Infrastructure (ARPA-I) Ideas and Innovation Challenge. The challenge aims to find innovative solutions to improve U.S. infrastructure, enhance safety, and reduce costs for the Department of Transportation (USDOT). A total of $1 million in prizes will be awarded across two stages.
"From the Wright Brothers at Kitty Hawk to the space age, American ingenuity has always led on the frontier of innovation in transportation," said Duffy. "These projects represent the best and brightest, next-generation ideas to propel us forward."
The competition received 448 concept paper submissions for Stage 1, from which 15 winners were chosen as semi-finalists. Each will receive $20,000 and an invitation to present their ideas at the USDOT Innovation Workshop on December 9, 2025, in Washington D.C.
In Stage 2, these semi-finalists can submit detailed proposals. Up to ten finalists will advance to compete for $700,000 in prizes at the ARPA-I Ideas Challenge Finals in 2026.
The semi-finalists include a diverse range of projects such as "Agentic AI for Adaptive and Resilient Middle-Mile Freight Operations" by Lacy Greening from Arizona and "CivicTwin: Physics-Grounded City-Scale Digital Twins" by UCLA Mobility Lab from California.
The U.S. Department of Transportation recently announced nearly $19.6 million in grants through its Small Shipyard Grant Program aimed at modernizing shipyards across various states (https://www.maritime.dot.gov/newsroom/maritime-administration-awards-nearly-20-million-funding-strengthen-us-shipyard-economic). Additionally, it celebrated the ADA's anniversary with a $5 million Inclusive Design Challenge focused on enhancing mobility options for people with disabilities (https://www.transportation.gov/briefing-room/anniversary-ada-usdot-announces-winners-its-first-ever-inclusive-design-challenge).
For more information about the Ideas Challenge and summaries of each winning concept, visit https://www.transportation.gov/arpa-i/ideas-challenge or contact ideas.arpa-i@dot.gov.
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