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Current and Upcoming Prize Challenges
PSCR publicizes all upcoming prize challenges to its website. Official announcements for all open opportunities are made available on Challenge.gov.
“The most exciting part was actually meeting the frontline firefighters. It was the first time that we were able to show (our solution) to the User and see what they think of it.”
- PSCR Prize Challenge Participant (2018)
current prize challenges
2020 CHARIoT Challenge: Advancing First Responder Communications
The CHARIoT Challenge, hosted by PSCR and its challenge partners, invites innovators to build augmented reality (AR) interfaces or Internet of Things (IoT) data emulators by participating in a multi-phase contest. The Challenge is running two multi-phase contests, simultaneously: Build Augmented Reality Interfaces for First Responder and Emulate Smart City Data for Disaster Scenarios. Learn more.
2020 Differential Privacy Temporal Map Data Challenge
Open for submissions October 1, 2020 - May 17, 2021.
The 2020 NIST PSCR Differential Privacy Temporal Map Data Challenge follows on the success of 2018 Differential Privacy Synthetic Data Challenge, extending the reach and utility of differential privacy algorithms.
Participants will compete in a sequence of marathon matches to apply differentially private algorithms to datasets that contain time and location data, where one individual in the data may contribute a short sequence of events. The goal is to create a privacy-preserving dashboard map that shows changes across different map segments over time.
Temporal map data is of particular interest to the public safety community in applications such as optimizing response time and personnel placement, natural disaster response, epidemic tracking, demographic data and civic planning. Yet, the ability to track a person's location over a period of time presents particularly serious privacy concerns. See this news article - for an overview of this topic.
The Differential Privacy Temporal Map Challenge will invite solvers to develop algorithms that preserve data utility while guaranteeing individual privacy is protected.
For more information on Differential Privacy, the challenge and its target public safety applications, check out the on-demand session "Crisis Collaborations: Challenges for Safe Data Sharing with Differential Privacy" from PSCR 2020: The Digital Experience.
upcoming prize challenges
2021 First Responder UAS Triple Challenge
The First Responder Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) Triple Challenge from NIST PSCR serves to help save lives faster and support advancing first responder search and rescue (SAR) operations. With a total of up to $720K in awards, this competition is comprised of three challenges with three different focus areas — all aimed at advancing UAS technology to support critical, lifesaving missions. PSCR invites any and all drone and security enthusiasts to join. Learn more.
2021 Mobile Fingerprint Capture for First Responders Challenge
PSCR is exploring ways to utilize already-deployed mobile technologies to provide a portable, on-the-scene fingerprint capture solution that would save public safety personnel resources and potentially save lives. The path to capable mobile fingerprinting could be made more accessible by addressing gaps in technology that have hindered development. To accomplish this, PSCR is launching the Mobile Fingerprint Capture for First Responders Challenge in Winter/Spring 2021. Winning solutions will focus on innovations across a variety of mobile device operating systems that advance the state of fingerprint capture technologies. Learn more.
See past prize challenges, funding amounts, and winners.
Learn more about PSCR's Open Innovation program.
View current and upcoming grants and cooperative agreements.
