Lab to put $14 million into Texas A&M engineering over five years

LOS ALAMOS - Los Alamos National Laboratory will invest $14 million over the next five years in students, faculty and research at Texas A&M University, Texas A&M Engineering announced Nov. 3.

The money goes through TALENT, short for TAMUS and LANL Engineering for Next-generation Technologies, a lab program building a pipeline of students, scientists and technology for its national security mission. The program is in its second year of full-time funding, with $3.3 million committed for 2026, according to Texas A&M Engineering.

This year TALENT is funding 30 senior capstone projects and 20 graduate research projects in shared priorities such as advanced manufacturing and hypersonics, led by more than 14 faculty members in six College of Engineering departments. In 2025, five TALENT-funded capstones won awards at the university's Engineering Project Showcase.

Los Alamos identified the need for a stronger university pipeline in 2022 and started with the Texas A&M System, a managing partner of the lab. TALENT is co-directed by T.J. Ulrich, the lab's director of university research and relations, and Pablo Tarazaga, a Texas A&M mechanical engineering professor.

"Ultimately, it's about the people, it's about the technology, and it's about serving the security of the nation," Ulrich said.