“The Senate version is vastly superior, and if one’s goal is to help us compete globally in technologies, the Senate version is better because it gives more money to the new applied directorate, and also charges them much more with working on these 10 core technologies and working with industry,” said Rob Atkinson, president of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation. 

Atkinson and ITIF were closely involved in helping draft the Senate bill sponsored by Schumer and backed by Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind. 

At a recent event hosted by ITIF, Young said the Senate’s version has broader backing than the House bill.

Republican senators and other stakeholders behind the Senate measure understand that “the weight of investment is heavier towards applied research in some of the discrete areas where we know we need to make considerable advancements,” including fields such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing and others, Young said. 

Young said China already has surpassed the U.S. in funding for research and development, and the Senate’s approach in emphasizing commercial applications also would help attract collaboration with U.S. allies around the world, making it a “force multiplier.”