A number of UMBC faculty members received UMBC internal research awards through the  Strategic Awards for Research Transitions (START) and Summer Research Faculty Fellowship (SURFF) programs to support their AI-related research projects.

• Anderson Frailey (Economics) received a SURFF award for “Cybersecurity Advantages of AI Access”

• David Garcia (CBEE): received a SURFF award for “Proteomic and Machine Learning Based Supplementation of Cell-free Systems for Biological Production”

• Dong Li (CSEE) received a START award for "Securing Smartphones Against Voice Scams with Real-Time Vocal-Acoustic Watermarking."

• Tera Reynolds (Information Systems) received a SURFF award for “A Human-centered Approach to Leveraging Artificial Intelligence in Research and Design to Support Hypertonic Chronic Pelvic Pain Syndrome Self-management”

• Eric Stokan (Political Science) received a START award for “Bridging the AI Digital Divide in Local Governance: Capability, Vulnerability, and the Future of Public Service”

• Roberto Yus (CSEE) received a START award for "Optimizing AI Workflows for Reliable, Low-Cost Agentic Systems."

Get more information on UMBC’s internal funding opportunities and open calls for proposals on the Division of Research and Creative Services website.