The US government has reportedly announced a $1 billion investment into AI and quantum computing research hubs. As part of the investment, a total of 12 new research institutes will be funded to push emerging technologies over the next five years.

These institutes will be embedded within different agencies of the federal government. While the National Science Foundation and other federal agencies “will invest $140 million in seven institutes focused on AI, the Energy Department will supervise and invest $625 million in the five institutes focused on quantum information sciences, which includes quantum computing,” said a report by The Wall Street Journal.

The AI institutes will focus on a diverse range of topics including using machine learning for atmospheric and ocean science.

The report further added that these institutes will be hosted by universities across the country. These include the University of Oklahoma, the University of Texas at Austin, University of Colorado, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, University of California, Davis, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Last year, an executive order on AI was rolled out by the Trump administration asking the federal government to prioritize artificial intelligence in its R&D spending.

The order directed the U.S. government to dedicate more investment into research, promotion and training on AI. However, there was no specific funding goals outlined in the order.