University of Tulsa Receives $12.6M for AI, Cybersecurity, and Energy Research

The University of Tulsa has received $12.6 million in federal appropriations to support four major research initiatives focused on energy resilience, materials science, and secure autonomous systems, announced in a press release.

The funding will expand the university’s pilot-scale research infrastructure, strengthen partnerships with industry and community organizations, and create new opportunities for student participation in applied research. Projects include development of zinc-sulfur batteries as a safer, lower-cost alternative to lithium-ion technology for grid-scale energy storage, supported by GPU-based artificial intelligence and machine learning modeling.

Additional initiatives will address energy transportation safety through machine learning analysis of multifuel flow and corrosion risks, and explore new materials capable of withstanding extreme environments for use in drilling, hypersonics, and spacecraft reentry. Another project will focus on advancing cooperative and secure physical AI systems, integrating robotics, AI/ML, kinesiology, and cybersecurity to develop assistive robotics for home and health care applications.