[Senate Report 119-129]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 451
119th Congress } { Report
SENATE
2d Session } { 119-129
_______________________________________________________________________
NATIONAL PROGRAMMABLE CLOUD LABORATORIES NETWORK ACT OF 2025
__________
R E P O R T
of the
COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION
on
S. 3468
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
July 13, 2026.--Ordered to be printed
______
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
69-010 WASHINGTON : 2026
SENATE COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION
one hundred nineteenth congress
second session
TED CRUZ, Texas, Chairman
JOHN THUNE, South Dakota MARIA CANTWELL, Washington
ROGER F. WICKER, Mississippi AMY KLOBUCHAR, Minnesota
DEB FISCHER, Nebraska BRIAN SCHATZ, Hawaii
JERRY MORAN, Kansas EDWARD J. MARKEY, Massachusetts
DAN SULLIVAN, Alaska GARY C. PETERS, Michigan
MARSHA BLACKBURN, Tennessee TAMMY BALDWIN, Wisconsin
TODD YOUNG, Indiana TAMMY DUCKWORTH, Illinois
TED BUDD, North Carolina JACKY ROSEN, Nevada
ERIC SCHMITT, Missouri BEN RAY LUJAN, New Mexico
JOHN CURTIS, Utah JOHN W. HICKENLOOPER, Colorado
BERNIE MORENO, Ohio JOHN FETTERMAN, Pennsylvania
TIM SHEEHY, Montana ANDY KIM, New Jersey
SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO, West Virginia LISA BLUNT ROCHESTER, Delaware
CYNTHIA M. LUMMIS, Wyoming
Brad Grantz, Majority Staff Director
Lila Harper Helms, Democratic Staff Director
Calendar No. 451
119th Congress } { Report
SENATE
2d Session } { 119-129
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NATIONAL PROGRAMMABLE CLOUD LABORATORIES NETWORK ACT OF 2025
_______
July 13, 2026.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Cruz, from the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 3468]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, to
which was referred the bill (S. 3468) to establish a national
programmable cloud laboratories network to enhance research
efficiency, innovation, and collaboration, and for other
purposes, having considered the same, reports favorably thereon
with amendments and recommends that the bill, as amended, do
pass.
PURPOSE OF THE BILL
The purpose of S. 3468 is to require the Director of the
National Science Foundation (NSF), in consultation with the
Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology
(NIST), to establish and oversee a National Programmable Cloud
Laboratories Network of up to six nodes to enable secure,
automated, and remotely programmable scientific research. The
bill sets eligibility and merit-based selection criteria for
participating entities, requires standards for
interoperability, cybersecurity, and data sharing, requires an
interagency assessment of non-designated laboratories, directs
annual briefings to Congress on the Network's operations, and
sunsets the program in 2031.
BACKGROUND AND NEEDS
Programmable cloud laboratories (cloud labs) combine
advanced instruments, robotics, and artificial intelligence to
perform experiments, quality control, and data analysis
remotely. They let researchers run high-throughput experiments,
produce reproducible results, and access equipment that
individual institutions may not have.\1\ Scientists and
engineers use these labs in biotechnology, materials science,
chemistry, and advanced manufacturing to design and test new
drugs, develop advanced materials, optimize chemical reactions,
scale production processes, and conduct quality control.
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\1\Lauren Everett, ``This Lab Allows Scientists to Conduct
Experiments Remotely at Any Time,'' Lab Manager, February 23, 2022,
https://www.labmanager.com/this-lab-allows-scientists-to-conduct-
experiments-remotely-at-any-time-27609.
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Expanding access to world-class biotechnology has been a
priority for the Federal Government. The AI Action Plan, issued
by the White House in July 2025, calls for America to lead in
programmable cloud-enabled laboratories. The relevant policy
proposal recommends that the Government, ``[t]hrough NSF, DOE,
NIST at DOC, and other Federal partners, invest in automated
cloud-enabled labs for a range of scientific fields, including
engineering, materials science, chemistry, biology, and
neuroscience, built by, as appropriate, the private sector,
Federal agencies, and research institutions in coordination and
collaboration with DOE National Laboratories.''\2\ The Office
of Management and Budget and Office of Science and Technology
Policy memorandum on research priorities for fiscal year 2027
directs department and agency heads to ``prioritize research
infrastructure investments that provide broad access, including
for researchers from small colleges and businesses.''\3\ It
specifically mentions that agencies ``should prioritize efforts
that advance and share new paradigms for research, including
the expansion of autonomous experimentation facilities that can
accelerate research and development (R&D) efforts.''\4\
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\2\The White House, Winning the AI Race: America's AI Action Plan,
Executive Office of the President, July 23, 2025, at p. 8, https://
www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Americas-AI-Action-
Plan.pdf.
\3\Executive Office of the President, Fiscal Year (FY) 2027
Administration Research and Development Budget Priorities and Cross-
Cutting Actions, OMB memorandum M-25-34 / NSTM-2, September 23, 2025,
at p. 7, https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/M-25-34-
NSTM-2-Fiscal-Year-FY-2027-Administration-Research-and-Development-
Budget-Priorities-and-Cross-Cutting-Actions.pdf.
\4\Ibid.
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Following up on the AI action plan, the NSF announced a
funding opportunity to test, scale, and demonstrate new methods
to advance automated science and engineering.\5\ The
initiative, known as the NSF PCL test bed, would aim to spend
up to $100 million to create a network of remotely accessible
laboratories to run user-programmed AI-enabled workflows.
Specifically, the PCL initiative aimed to provide access to
advanced cloud labs in classroom settings. The Directorate for
Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships (TIP), which led the
initiative, anticipates making up to six awards of 5 million
per year over 4 years to institutions of higher education,
nonprofits, and for-profit organizations.
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\5\National Science Foundation, ``NSF to Invest in New National
Network of AI-Programmable Cloud Laboratories,'' NSF News, August 5,
2025, https://www.nsf.gov/news/nsf-invest-new-national-network-ai-
programmable-cloud.
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In its final report, the National Security Commission for
Emerging Biotechnology also recommended that Congress support
the development of cloud labs. Recommendation 4.1D states that
``Congress should authorize the National Science Foundation to
establish a network of cloud labs,'' giving researchers state-
of-the-art tools to make data generation easier.\6\
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\6\National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology, Charting
the Future of Biotechnology: Final Report, chapter 4 (``Out-Innovate
Our Strategic Competitors''), April 2025, https://
www.biotech.senate.gov/final-report/chapters/chapter-4/section-1/#rec-
4-1d.
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Global competitors increasingly invest in automated
research infrastructure, making access to programmable cloud
labs critical for U.S. leadership in science and technology.
China, for example, launched the Advanced Biofoundry Shenzhen
(ABS), a nearly 20,000-square-foot facility, in 2020.\7\ The
institute focuses on synthetic biology research and is located
within Guangming Science City, a 38-square-mile area in
Shenzhen that serves as a hub for scientific and technological
development in the People's Republic of China. The facility
began operating in spring 2025, with talent recruited from
institutions like the California Institute of Technology, the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard.\8\ Although
little is known about the details of the experiments performed
there, the RAND corporation believes that ABS, alongside an
associated brain science institute, houses up to 1,800 pieces
of equipment and hosts 100 researchers.\9\
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\7\Ying-Chiang Jeffrey Lee, et al., Documenting Cloud Labs and
Examining How Remotely Operated Automated Laboratories Could Enable Bad
Actors, RAND Corporation, April 2025, at p. 7, https://www.rand.org/
content/dam/rand/pubs/perspectives/PEA3800/PEA3851-1/RAND_
PEA3851-1.pdf.
\8\Window to China, ``The World's Largest Center for Synthetic
Biology Is Being Built in Shenzhen. It Will Soon Start Work,'' October
11, 2024, https://window-to-china.de/2024/10/11/the-worlds-largest-
center-for-synthetic-biology-is-being-built-in-shenzhen-it-will-soon-
start-work/.
\9\Ying-Chiang Jeffrey Lee, et al., Documenting Cloud Labs and
Examining How Remotely Operated Automated Laboratories Could Enable Bad
Actors, RAND Corporation, April 2025, at p. 10, https://www.rand.org/
content/dam/rand/pubs/perspectives/PEA3800/PEA3851-1/RAND_
PEA3851-1.pdf.
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Friendly nations are also devoting resources to cloud labs.
Between 2010 and 2016, the United Kingdom launched three new
cloud labs--Arctoris, LabGenius, and the Digital Innovation
facility--focused on drug development and AI scientific
discovery.\10\ In December 2025, Google DeepMind announced a
partnership with the UK Government to establish its first
automated science laboratory aimed at discovering new materials
for use in energy and computing.\11\
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\10\Ibid.
\11\Demis Hassabis, et al., ``Strengthening Our Partnership with
the UK Government to Support Prosperity and Security in the AI Era,''
Google DeepMind Blog, December 10, 2025, https://deepmind.google/blog/
strengthening-our-partnership-with-the-uk-government-to-support-
prosperity-and-security-in-the-ai-era/.
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There is bipartisan interest in supporting the development
of cloud labs. Cloud labs advance research capacity by allowing
smaller firms to rent access to advanced technology that would
otherwise be unaffordable, achieving an economy of scale.
Because cloud labs could lower the barrier to high-tech
equipment across the country, there has been an effort across
the Government to establish such programs.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS
S. 3468 would do the following:
Establish a national network of up to six NSF-
designated programmable cloud laboratory nodes,
including, as practicable, at least one node with
biotechnology capabilities.
Create a competitive merit-reviewed application
process open to universities, nonprofits, industry, and
consortia.
Direct NIST, in coordination with NSF, to develop
and maintain interoperability, data-sharing, and remote
experimentation standards.
Direct NIST, NSF, and DOE to assess other
programmable laboratories and identify opportunities
for and barriers to coordination with the network.
Authorize up to $5 million per year for each
designated node of the National Programmable Cloud
Laboratories Network for a maximum of 5 years to
support secure, automated, and programmable research.
Require annual briefings to Congress on network
performance, fiscal sustainability progress, and
alignment with national scientific and economic
priorities.
Terminate the network and associated authorities and
funding on September 30, 2031.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
S. 3468, the National Programmable Cloud Laboratories
Network Act of 2025, was introduced on December 11, 2025, by
Senator Fetterman (for himself and Senator Budd) and was
referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation of the Senate. On February 12, 2026, the
Committee met in open Executive Session and, by voice vote,
ordered S. 3468 reported favorably with an amendment.
ESTIMATED COSTS
In accordance with paragraph 11(a) of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate and section 403 of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee provides the
following cost estimate, prepared by the Congressional Budget
Office:
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
S. 3468 would direct the National Science Foundation (NSF)
to allocate $30 million a year from 2026 through 2030 from
amounts already available to the foundation to establish a
network of up to six cloud-based lab systems, in consultation
with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)
and the Department of Energy (DOE). The systems would need to
be programmed to support automated, remotely accessible
research. The bill also would require NIST to develop
interoperability and data standards and the NSF to report to
the Congress on existing laboratory capabilities and program
activities.
Using information from the NSF, CBO estimates that the
agency is currently funding up to six cloud programming nodes
under its general authorities provided by current law at a cost
of about $5 million for each node. In addition, the NSF, in
collaboration with participating entities, is currently
developing the data standards required by the bill. On that
basis, CBO estimates that implementing the bill's requirement
to establish cloud-based systems and develop data standards
would have no budgetary effect.
Based on the cost of similar reports, CBO estimates that
the reporting requirements would have an insignificant cost
over the 2026-2031 period. Any related spending would be
subject to the availability of appropriated funds.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Katherine Chou.
The estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy
Director of Budget Analysis.
Phillip L. Swagel,
Director, Congressional Budget Office.
REGULATORY IMPACT STATEMENT
In accordance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee provides the
following evaluation of the regulatory impact of the
legislation, as reported:
Number of Persons Covered
S. 3468 would cover academic, nonprofit, and private-sector
entities that seek designation as nodes in the National
Programmable Cloud Laboratories Network (Network), including
consortia of such entities. Researchers, faculty, technical
staff, or students at these entities may be directly affected
through access to Network platforms, participation in automated
and remotely programmable research, and adherence to Network
standards. Non-designated laboratories may be indirectly
affected through opportunities to coordinate with nodes or
adopt Network standards. Private-sector infrastructure
providers, research collaborators, and end-users that benefit
from innovation, workforce development, or infrastructure
improvements enabled by the Network may also experience
indirect impacts.
Economic Impact
S. 3468 may have an indirect impact on the U.S. economy if
expanded access to automated, remotely programmable laboratory
infrastructure accelerates the development of new tools and
procedures in biotechnology, chemistry, materials science, and
other sectors.
Privacy
S. 3468 would have no impact on the personal privacy of
individuals and does not impose new requirements or grant
authorities that would affect the privacy of businesses. The
bill would ensure that proprietary data, including research
results, methods, and procedures in biotechnology, materials
science, and other scientific disciplines, would not be shared
with other nodes or across the Network without permission. The
bill would establish standards and protocols to protect
sensitive data and prevent unauthorized disclosure.
Paperwork
The Committee does not anticipate a major increase in
paperwork burdens resulting from the passage of this
legislation. S. 3468 would require the Director of the NSF, in
consultation with the Director of the NIST, to designate nodes
for the Network through a public solicitation and corresponding
merit-based review process. Agencies may need to compile data,
evaluate applications, coordinate with participating entities,
and prepare annual briefings to Congress. The overall
administrative burden would be limited and proportional to
conducting merit-based review and overseeing Network operations
and spending.
CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING
In compliance with paragraph 4(b) of rule XLIV of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee provides that no
provisions contained in the bill, as reported, meet the
definition of congressionally directed spending items under the
rule.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS
Section 1. Short title.
This section would provide that the bill may be cited as
the ``National Programmable Cloud Laboratories Network Act of
2025''.
Section 2. Definitions.
This section would define key terms, including ``artificial
intelligence'', ``biological data'', ``Director'',
``institution of higher education'', ``Network'', ``node'',
``non-designated laboratory'', and ``programmable cloud
laboratory''. It would clarify that the Director refers to the
Director of the National Science Foundation unless otherwise
specified.
Section 3. National Programmable Cloud Laboratories Network.
This section would establish a National Programmable Cloud
Laboratories Network to support secure, automated, and cloud-
enabled scientific experimentation.
This section would state the purposes of the Network,
including maintaining U.S. leadership in advanced
experimentation, biotechnology, laboratory automation, and
artificial intelligence; reducing the cost of federally funded
research through automation and reproducibility; accelerating
the transfer of Government-funded research to private-sector
commercial applications; improving collaboration among
federally funded laboratories, institutions of higher
education, and private industry; ensuring measurable cost
savings, efficiencies, and long-term fiscal sustainability;
incentivizing private-sector cost sharing; supporting workforce
development aligned with industry needs; strengthening the
domestic industrial base for scientific automation and
robotics; and advancing programmable cloud laboratory research
in disciplines such as materials science, biotechnology,
chemistry, and related fields.
This section would require the Director of the NSF, in
consultation with the Director of NIST, to designate and
oversee a Network of not more than six nodes within 1 year of
enactment to support secure, standards-based, and cost-
effective remote experimentation and automated research. This
section would specify that the assessment of non-designated
laboratories required under section 5 would occur only after
final node designation.
This section would require Network nodes to enable
programmable workflows and automated science, provide access to
advanced scientific and manufacturing instrumentation,
including artificial intelligence-enabled tools, collaborate on
common standards and best practices, and support
interoperability across the Network.
This section would require the Director to issue a public
solicitation for node designation and would authorize
institutions of higher education, nonprofit research
organizations, private-sector research entities, and consortia
of such entities to apply.
This section would require applicants to submit a technical
and programmatic plan for laboratory operations and automation,
a plan and timeline for achieving long-term financial self-
sustainability with reduced reliance on Federal funding, and
evidence of non-Federal cost sharing or third-party
contributions.
This section would require the Director to select nodes
through a competitive, merit-reviewed, and transparent process
that evaluates existing infrastructure, capacity for
distributed cloud-enabled research, likelihood of long-term
sustainability, ability to collaborate with other entities and
Federal research agencies, research and cybersecurity
protocols, and demonstrated user demand.
This section would require the Director to give preference
to applicants demonstrating meaningful third-party cost sharing
and pre-existing infrastructure and would, to the extent
practicable, require that at least one node support cloud-
enabled biotechnology research.
This section would authorize the Director to award each
designated node up to $5 million per year for a maximum of 5
years to support the Network.
Lastly, this section would require each designated node to
collaborate with other Network members, participate with NIST
in developing interoperability and data-sharing standards,
support secure remote experimentation and data sharing, engage
in public-private partnerships to facilitate technology
transfer, develop revenue-generating sustainability models,
establish performance metrics, and leverage commercially
available hardware and software where practicable to reduce
costs.
Section 4. Interagency collaboration.
This section would require the Director of NIST, in
coordination with the Director of the NSF and participating
entities, to develop and promulgate interoperability standards
within 180 days after node designation. This section would
require those standards to address laboratory instrumentation,
data infrastructure, communication protocols, experiment
execution systems, secure and standardized data-sharing
(including biological data), minimum technical and operational
requirements for remote experimentation and reproducibility,
and periodic updates to reflect technological advancements, in
consultation with private-sector partners.
Section 5. Assessment of non-designated laboratories.
This section would require the Director of the NSF, in
consultation with the Secretary of Energy and the Director of
NIST, to conduct and submit to the appropriate congressional
committees a comprehensive assessment of non-designated
programmable laboratories within 180 days after final node
designation.
This section would require the assessment to identify, to
the extent practicable, Federal, academic, nonprofit, and
private-sector laboratories with relevant automated or remote
research capabilities; evaluate their instrumentation,
automation, data, cybersecurity, and research security
capacities; identify pathways for coordination with Network
nodes; and assess legal, contractual, or intellectual property
considerations that may affect participation.
Lastly, this section would require proprietary information
to be protected from public disclosure and would require
publication of a nonproprietary public summary, with the option
to submit a proprietary annex to Congress.
Section 6. Reporting and oversight.
This section would require the Director of NSF to provide
annual briefings to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Science,
Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives beginning
1 year after enactment.
This section would require each briefing to assess
alignment with national scientific and economic priorities,
progress toward node-level financial self-sustainability, and
performance metrics related to scientific output, cost-
effectiveness, and engagement.
Section 7. Funding.
This section would authorize the Director of the NSF to
allocate $30 million per year for fiscal years 2026 through
2030.
Section 8. Sunset.
This section would sunset the National Programmable Cloud
Laboratories Network, including all authorities, programs, and
funding, on September 30, 2031.
CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW
In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee states that the
bill as reported would make no change to existing law.
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