USC wins $181 million U.S. Army contract

USC won a $181 million defense contract to develop “advanced modeling and simulation capabilities” for the U.S. Army.

The contract renews funding for USC’s little-known Institute for Creative Technologies, a 25-year-old research center funded by the U.S. Department of Defense. The institute is one of just four of its kind that works with the Army.

The institute does not develop weapons, a university spokesperson said.

Its researchers previously created BRAVEMIND, a virtual reality PTSD treatment that helps veterans relive traumatic memories with the guidance of a therapist. It has also created a virtual archive of testimony from Holocaust survivors.

The USC spokesperson said the institute’s latest round of funding comes from the CHIPS and Science Act — a 2022 Biden administration effort to bolster domestic semiconductor manufacturing.