UTAustin Portugal Program

The UT Austin Portugal Program (UT-P), launched in 2007, is dedicated to exploring various fields of knowledge through multidisciplinary research and fostering technology transfer and commercialization through collaboration between Portugal, the University of Texas, and other institutions.

Phase IV of the Program, covering the period 2025–2030, strengthens the partnership’s ambition, strategic focus, and societal impact, in line with the maturity of the national scientific system and the global challenges associated with the green transition, digitalization, and economic competitiveness, in accordance with national and European priorities.

This phase of the Program focuses on an integrated set of initiatives in research, training, mobility, innovation, and governance, structured around three pillars: knowledge creation, human capital development, and economic growth.

Priority areas for collaboration

• Clean Energy
• Nanotechnologies
• Advanced Computing
• Space and Earth (Space-Earth Technologies)

Initiatives

• Strategic and exploratory research projects: collaborative research projects between researchers at UT Austin, Portuguese institutions, and industry partners, with a strong emphasis on translating knowledge into impactful solutions;
• Advanced education and training, including specialized training academies, executive programs, and doctoral mentoring initiatives;
• Transatlantic mobility and exchanges, supporting research and training opportunities for students, doctoral candidates, postdoctoral researchers, and faculty members between Portugal and UT Austin;
• Innovation and entrepreneurship, through dedicated programs such as TechLaunch (inspired by NSF I Corps™), promoting technology validation, the creation of startups, and engagement with international innovation ecosystems.

This program benefits or has benefited from funding from the Recovery and Resilience Plan, being one of the measures included in investment RE-C06-i06 – Science Plus Training and contracted between FCT and the Recuperar Portugal Mission Structure.