Impact Institutes awards first seed funding to 10 research teams
Impact Institutes, a seed funding initiative launched in May, has awarded its first cycle of funding to 10 new institutes from across the University of Michigan.
The awards are intended to promote interdisciplinary collaboration and advance high-impact research, positioning the institutes for long-term sustainability and external funding.
The institutes include participants from 17 schools and colleges and more than 20 additional units, including nontraditional research partners such as MDining and Michigan Recreation. Their research aims include developing new materials to meet rising electrical demand from AI and data centers, advancing policy solutions for nutrition insecurity and chronic disease and creating sustainable plant fibers for textiles and building materials.
The new institutes support the five impact areas of Look to Michigan, with nearly all advancing technology. Look to Michigan is U-M’s strategic vision for driving innovation and societal impact through life-changing education; human health and well-being; advanced technology; energy, climate action, sustainability and environment equity; and democracy, civic and global engagement.
Each institute will receive $200,000 over the next two years. Funding is provided by the Strategic Initiative Fund, which supports collaborative initiatives that advance meaningful impact across U-M and beyond.
“The institutes chosen in this first round reflect an extraordinary breadth and depth of vision,” said Lisa Prosser, associate vice president for research-health sciences and research faculty affairs. “Faculty came together across disciplines to propose solutions for challenges in energy, AI, health and well-being, manufacturing and sustainability. The funded institutes are pushing boundaries, combining expertise in unprecedented ways and have the potential to build a foundation for future growth, partnerships and lasting impact.”
Newly awarded institutes that demonstrate potential for national or global leadership will be eligible to compete for venture stage funding. Venture stage institutes will receive $500,000 per year for three years, with matching investments required.
Ten additional projects will be selected in 2027 for funding in the second cycle, with letters of intent due July 1, 2026.
“Impact Institutes is helping position U-M as a national leader in cross-disciplinary research, which is central to our Look to Michigan vision,” said Arthur Lupia, vice president for research and innovation. “By bringing together faculty from across campuses and disciplines, we are accelerating solutions to the most urgent challenges of our time. In this pivotal moment, these institutes are translating research into action that will improve lives in Michigan and around the world.”
Below is a summary of the selected projects:
UM Biocatalysis Impact Institute – Sustainability through enzyme chemistry
Director: Alison Narayan, Life Sciences Institute
Goal: The UM Biocatalysis Institute aims to revolutionize chemical innovation and address pressing environmental challenges — like the carbon footprint of the Haber-Bosch process — by advancing interdisciplinary research in enzyme-mediated synthesis, aligning with U-M’s core values and fostering cross-unit collaborations in science and sustainability.
Institute for Food, Nutrition, and Health Policy
Director: Katherine Bauer, School of Public Health
Co-director: Eric Brandt, Medical School
Goal: The Institute for Food, Nutrition, and Health Policy brings together interdisciplinary expertise at the intersections of food, nutrition, health and policy. As a hub for innovative, community-informed policy research, leadership development and trusted knowledge the IFNHP will inform health-focused food and nutrition-related legislation, regulations and programming.
Impact Institute of Intelligent Electronics
Director: Zetian MI, College of Engineering
Co-directors: Di Liang and Parag Deotare, College of Engineering
Goal: The Impact Institute for Intelligent Electronics at U-M aims to revolutionize electronics and energy systems by developing ferroelectric nitrides — a pioneering material that enables ultra-efficient computing, communications and sustainable fuel production — addressing the rising electricity demand from AI and data centers.
Institute for Advanced Construction Futures
Director: Kathy Velikov, A. Alfred Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning
Co-directors: Vineet Kamat, College of Engineering, and Charlene Zietsma, School for Environment and Sustainability
Goal: The Institute for Advanced Construction Futures at U-M will drive a “Construction 4.0” transformation by integrating advanced manufacturing, automation, AI and digital technologies to address America’s urgent housing and building infrastructure needs more sustainably, efficiently and affordably.
University of Michigan Advanced Manufacturing Institute
Director: Chinedum Okwudire, College of Engineering
Co-director: Jeffrey Abell, College of Engineering
Goal: The University of Michigan Advanced Manufacturing Institute will be a national leader in human-centered, resilient and sustainable manufacturing, integrating engineering, behavioral science and organizational design to address automation, supply chain and climate challenges. UMAMI will also build a symbiotic translational ecosystem to ensure that innovations rapidly deliver real-world impact.
Institute for Maternal Health Innovation and Excellence
Director: Julie Ivy, College of Engineering
Co-directors: Alex Peahl and Jenna Wiens, Medical School
Goal: The Institute for Maternal Health Innovation and Excellence aims to transform maternal and child health through AI. IMHIE brings together interdisciplinary expertise to improve maternal health outcomes by harnessing large-scale multimodal data, developing advanced methods to generate data-driven insights which address gaps that limit prevention of maternal morbidity and mortality.
THREADS Collaborative for Natural Fiber Futures
Director: Melissa Duhaime, LSA
Co-director: Miki Banu, College of Engineering
Goal: The Michigan THREADS Collaborative will address the environmental and social harms of society’s dependence on synthetic fiber by developing regionally sourced natural fiber solutions for sustainable textiles, composites and building materials in ways that support local supply chains, uplift material cultures and connect people with the places and systems that sustain them.
University of Michigan Institute for Social Prescribing
Director: Mark Clague, School of Music, Theatre & Dance
Co-director: Lindsey Mortenson, Medical School
Goal: Facing increased rates of social isolation and loneliness at U-M and institutions nationwide, the Institute for Social Prescribing aims to transform campus well-being by developing, researching and scaling a comprehensive social prescribing program that encourages health and social care professionals to connect individuals to enriching community experiences, such as arts, nature, movement, service and shared meals, while serving as a resource and catalyst for research and advocacy for social prescribing, nationally and internationally.
The Global Supply Chain Intelligence Institute
Director: Joshua Newell, School for Environment and Sustainability
Goal: The Global Supply Chain Intelligence Institute at U-M will address urgent challenges of transparency, sustainability and resilience in supply chains for critical minerals, agriculture products and other vital commodities by integrating interdisciplinary expertise and pioneering federated AI approaches to analyze fragmented and sensitive global data.
Institute for AI-Driven Therapeutics Discovery
Director: Duxin Sun, College of Pharmacy
Co-director: Kayvan Najarian, Medical School
Goal: The Institute for AI-Driven Therapeutics Discovery at U-M will integrate AI and machine learning to address root causes of drug development failures, aiming to revolutionize the discovery of small molecules and biologics and position the university as a global leader in this field.