Research and analysis

UK Science and Technology Network summary: USA

Updated 8 April 2026

1. Science and Technology Landscape

The United States spent an estimated spent nearly $940 billion in research and development (R&D) across all sectors of the economy in 2023, the most recent year for which statistics are available. US scientists, innovators, and technology companies demonstrate excellence in nearly every research field and economic sector. 

The majority of American R&D (78% in 2023) is funded and operated by the private sector. A significant portion of this R&D is funded by US technology companies Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, Apple, and Microsoft, which each spend tens of billions of dollars each year on research and development. At the federal level, science funding is highly decentralised, with over 20 executive departments and agencies supporting research primarily focused on fundamental science. Leading funding agencies include:

• the National Science Foundation (NSF)
• the National Institutes of Health (NIH)
• the Department of Energy (DOE)
• the Department of War (DOW).

Federal laboratories span the country, including the 17 DOE National Laboratories. 

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) acts as a convener and co-ordinates cross-agency priorities on federal science initiatives. Many federal agencies also provide competitive or strategic research funding to external delivery partners, mainly the vast network of US public and private universities. The Department of Commerce also has an influential role in the regulation and growth of the USA’s technology sector.  

In addition to the US federal system, state and local governments have considerable discretion to provide funding or policy support for science and innovation. Implementation varies by state, and innovation programmes are often tailored to fit a state’s economic focus - for example, life sciences in Massachusetts, agriculture in Iowa - and may be supported by public and private stakeholders, including local universities. States also have license to regulate technologies such as AI, with some taking a more interventionist approach than others.  

The US has 7 of the top 10 universities in the world, with the UK home to the other 3.

US science, innovation and technology priorities

The Trump administration’s priorities in science and technology have included:

• AI: In July 2025, the Administration published America’s AI Action Plan, which sets out priorities for AI research, infrastructure development, and workforce training. In November 2025, the administration launched the Genesis Mission to form a national effort to use AI to accelerate scientific research

• quantum science: In November 2025, the Department of Energy announced $625 million in funding to renew its five National Quantum Information Science Research Centers (NQISRC).

• “Gold Standard Science”: In May 2025, the Trump Administration issued Executive Order 14303 which directed federal agencies to conduct scientific activities in a manner which the Administration defines as reproducible, transparent, communicative of error and uncertainty, collaborative and interdisciplinary, skeptical of its findings and assumptions, structured for falsifiability of hypotheses, subject to unbiased peer review, accepting of negative results as positive outcomes, and without conflicts of interest.

Other priority areas include Nuclear Technologies, Biotechnology & Health, Space Science, Spectrum & 6G, and Advanced Manufacturing.

2. UK partnership with USA on science, technology and innovation

The UK and US have a long history of collaboration on science, innovation and technology, and there are countless examples of organic partnerships between researchers, innovators, and funders. In 2025, the UK and US agreed a Technology Prosperity Deal to facilitate investment and collaboration on AI, quantum science, and civil nuclear (including both fusion and fission technologies).  

The UK and US have many previous agreements that included science and technology as a core theme including:  

• the 2017 government-to-government Science & Technology Agreement , which outlines a commitment to collaborate on world-class science and innovation

• the 2021 trilateral security AUKUS Partnership, including collaboration in quantum, AI and cyber technologies

The Science and Technology Network in the US (Formerly: Science and Innovation Network) includes 18 officers working across seven regions to develop science and innovation opportunities for the benefit of the UK. The team is led from the British Embassy in Washington DC. 

In the period 2026 to 2029, STN US will focus on 5 overarching themes: 

• artificial intelligence and compute  

• quantum science and technology  

• engineering biology  

• space science and technologies  

• energy: nuclear fusion energy, critical minerals, battery storage 

These workstreams reflect both the high-level HMG areas of focus in Science and Technology under the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy (2025), the Science and Technology Framework (2025) and the breadth of opportunity for bilateral partnerships at the US federal and regional levels. 

US STN supports multi-stakeholder UK-US research and innovation collaborations; identifies and supports emerging opportunities for UK industry; tracks US science and innovation policy; and supports UK policy development. The team works closely with the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) and the Ministry of Defence, alongside other UK organisations. STN also has a strong partnership with UK Research & Innovation (UKRI) who have an office in Washington DC.

3. Science and Technology Network  contacts

For further information or to reach an individual US STN officer, write to usa.si@fcdo.gov.uk