Alabama Water Institute

What Alabama Water Institute does

The Alabama Water Institute (AWI) is a university-based water research institute founded in 2018 and housed within The University of Alabama's Division for Research in Tuscaloosa. The institute operates three primary research entities: CIROH (Cooperative Institute for Research to Operations in Hydrology), a NOAA Cooperative Institute hosted at UA that coordinates a 28-institution national consortium focused on operational water forecasting; the Global Water Security Center, which delivers water and environmental security analysis to national decision-makers; and CONSERVE (Community Oriented Nature-based Science for Ecosystem Restoration and Versatile Engineering), a community-centered research group working on rivercane restoration, watershed management, and biodiversity. AWI is uniquely co-located on the UA campus with NOAA's National Water Center and the USGS Hydrologic Instrumentation Facility, giving it direct physical and institutional access to U.S. operational water prediction infrastructure.

AWI's technology portfolio spans hydrologic and hydraulic modeling, AI/ML-enabled flood and drought forecasting, satellite and aerial remote sensing, underwater wireless communications (mu-Net) leveraging existing oil pipeline infrastructure, Imaging FlowCytobots for harmful algal bloom prediction, and novel ground-penetrating radar applications adapted from archaeology to map rivercane rhizomes for erosion control. The institute's research outputs are distributed through conferences (DevCon, AGU, AMS), the WaterWorks seminar series, newsletters, K-12 outreach, and direct research-to-operations transfer via NOAA's Office of Water Prediction and the Southeast DEWS drought early warning network.

AWI does not sell commercial products or services; its revenue model is built on federal research grants (NOAA, NSF, USGS, USDA, Department of Defense), cooperative agreements, and internal UA support. Major awards include a $5.8M NSF EPSCoR grant (Aug 2024) for Gulf-region climate extremes research, a $3.8M America the Beautiful Challenge grant for rivercane conservation, a $3M NSF NRT traineeship, a $2.34M NOAA Sea Grant for marine debris, a $1.5M NSF CISE award for underwater robotics, and a $457K GCOOS grant for harmful algal bloom forecasting. Customer segments are exclusively government and academic: federal agencies (NOAA, USGS, USDA, NWS, Bureau of Reclamation), state climatology offices, tribal nations (Jena Band of Choctaw), agricultural producers, and emergency management professionals across the U.S. Southeast.

Name

Alabama Water Institute

Legal name

Alabama Water Institute

Website

https://awi.ua.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Alabama Water Institute is a university-based water research institute at The University of Alabama that leads interdisciplinary research across hydrology, water security, and ecosystem restoration through three entities—CIROH, CONSERVE, and the Global Water Security Center—serving federal agencies, state and tribal governments, and academic partners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Tuscaloosa

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Federal Research Grants: Primary funding from federal agencies including NOAA, NSF, USGS, USDA, and Department of Defense for water research programs, hydrological forecasting, and ecosystem restoration projects
2. NOAA Cooperative Institute Funding: Ongoing cooperative agreement funding through NOAA's Office of Water Prediction and National Weather Service for CIROH operations and research
3. Equipment Grants: Grants for specialized research equipment such as acoustic Doppler instruments, river mapping technology, and environmental monitoring systems
4. NSF EPSCoR Grants: National Science Foundation research funding for climate extremes, ecosystems, and workforce development in the Gulf region

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels12 records

Core offering

The Alabama Water Institute (AWI) is a university-based research institute within The University of Alabama that advances water research, technology, and innovative solutions through three primary research entities: CIROH (Cooperative Institute for Research to Operations in Hydrology), Global Water Security Center, and CONSERVE. The institute delivers interdisciplinary water research, graduate training programs, operational forecasting tools, and decision-support analysis to federal agencies, academic partners, and communities. Its work spans hydrology, water quality, drought and flood prediction, ecosystem restoration, and AI/ML applications for water science.

Product overview

The Alabama Water Institute (AWI) is a university-based research institute that operates as a platform for interdisciplinary water research rather than a commercial product company. AWI's portfolio includes three primary research entities: CIROH (Cooperative Institute for Research to Operations in Hydrology) which advances NOAA water forecasting through AI and machine learning; CONSERVE which focuses on nature-based watershed restoration and ecosystem engineering; and the Global Water Security Center which provides water security analysis for national decision-makers. The institute also operates the Water-R2O NRT graduate training program. Together, these programs deliver water research, prediction capabilities, and workforce development services rather than commercial products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CIROH: Cooperative Institute for Research to Operations in Hydrology - a NOAA Cooperative Institute focused on operational water prediction
• CONSERVE
• Global Water Security Center

Products and services

• Alabama Water Institute (AWI) Research Programs

Quantifiable outcome

• University of Alabama ranked No. 13 nationally and No. 100 globally in Water Resources by U.S. News & World Report
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability5 records

Feature10 records

Partnerships

23 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• America the Beautiful Challenge / National Fish and Wildlife FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024$3.8 million grant through CONSERVE to revitalize rivercane ecosystems and preserve cultural heritage in the Southeastern U.S., involving multiple tribal partnerships.
• National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020CIROH partnered with NIDIS to connect drought research with monitoring and decision-making across the Southeast. The partnership established the Southeast DEWS (Drought Early Warning System) in 2020, creating a regional network connecting stakeholders with researchers and decision-makers across state lines.
• NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNOAA is a primary partner hosting CIROH as a NOAA Cooperative Institute. The partnership focuses on operational water prediction, drought early warning through NIDIS, and the National Water Model. NOAA's Office of Water Prediction, National Weather Service, and National Ocean Service collaborate on water forecasting and decision support.
• U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUSGS collaborates through the Hydrologic Instrumentation Facility on campus and co-hosts research programs. USGS Director Dr. Ned Mamula visited UA in 2026 to deepen the growing partnership and explore future water resource initiatives.
• National Weather ServicecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPart of the CIROH cooperative agreement, supporting revolutionizing U.S. water forecasting through collaborative research and operational water prediction capabilities.
• USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS) SoutheastcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUSDA ARS Southeast partnered with CONSERVE through the Innovative Water Systems program. The partnership addresses aquifer recharge modeling, rivercane as an agricultural buffer crop, and mapping underground root architecture of rivercane using ground-penetrating radar. Centers on collaboration with Dr. Christopher Delhom and the National Center for Alluvial Aquifer Research.
• U.S. Bureau of ReclamationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFederal agency participating in DevCon 2026 discussions on water prediction challenges and priorities, contributing to the national water research community.
• Public Safety CanadaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational partner participating in DevCon 2026, representing cross-border collaboration in water prediction and emergency management.
• Consortium of Universities for the Advancement of Hydrological Sciences (CUAHSI)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCUAHSI collaborates with CIROH on the National Water Center Innovators Program Summer Institute, bringing graduate students together with academic researchers and NWC staff.
• Gulf Coast Ocean Observing System (GCOOS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAwarded $457,000 to Dr. Kenneth Hoadley for Imaging FlowCytobots to improve harmful algal bloom forecasting in Mobile Bay. GCOOS supports the integration of IFCB data with Alabama's Real-Time Coastal Observing System (ARCOS).
• Dauphin Island Sea Lab (DISL)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative research partner for coastal and marine studies, including harmful algal bloom research, barrier island groundwater studies, and underwater communication research. UA researchers conduct work at DISL facilities.
• University of HoustonminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration to discover how to use existing underwater oil pipelines for data communications and subsea infrastructure monitoring in the Gulf of Mexico.
• Georgia TechminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to develop mobile sensor networks for underwater data collection and environmental monitoring using autonomous surface and underwater vehicles.
• Jackson State UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in NSF EPSCoR $5.8 million climate extremes research project in the Gulf region.
• Louisiana State UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in NSF EPSCoR $5.8 million climate extremes research project in the Gulf region.
• Tulane UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in NSF EPSCoR $5.8 million climate extremes research project in the Gulf region.
• Tuskegee UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in NSF EPSCoR $5.8 million climate extremes research project in the Gulf region.
• University of Louisiana at LafayetteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in NSF EPSCoR $5.8 million climate extremes research project in the Gulf region.
• Jena Band of Choctaw IndianscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTribal partner collaborating on rivercane ecosystem stewardship and cultural resiliency. The partnership includes cultural activities like helping thin native rivercane stands and integrating traditional ecological knowledge into restoration efforts.
• USDA Natural Resources Conservation ServicecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPotential future partner for determining rivercane as a conservation crop worthy of inclusion in production rotation, which could make farmers eligible for federal incentive payments.
• University of Alabama in HuntsvillecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUAH is a CIROH consortium member contributing to drought research and the Southeast DEWS network through their partnership with NIDIS.
• University of UtahcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost institution for DevCon 2026, partner in snowpack modeling research, and collaborator with CIROH on National Water Model development.
• Saban CenterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with AWI to showcase Science On a Sphere, an interactive educational exhibit about water and environmental systems.

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Broad incumbents

• National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR): Larger federally funded atmospheric and earth-systems research center with overlapping modeling, data infrastructure, and workforce development scope; broader in scale but a comparable academic research model to AWI.

Direct peers

• Stroud Water Research Center: Independent freshwater research institute focused on watershed science, water quality, and ecosystem health with grant-funded applied research model closely aligned to AWI's CONSERVE work.
• IIHR — Hydroscience & Engineering (University of Iowa): Long-standing university water research center focused on hydrology, fluid mechanics, and environmental modeling, with similar federal grant funding model and interdisciplinary science-to-operations orientation as AWI.
• Consortium of Universities for the Advancement of Hydrological Sciences (CUAHSI): National academic consortium organizing hydrology research, data infrastructure (HydroShare), and student training programs — directly comparable in mission to AWI/CIROH and an explicit AWI partner.
• Dauphin Island Sea Lab: Gulf Coast marine research laboratory partnering with AWI on harmful algal bloom forecasting (IFCBs), barrier island studies, and underwater communications — operates a comparable academic research model in overlapping coastal science domains.
• University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) — Earth System Science Center: UA System partner and CIROH consortium member contributing to drought research and Southeast DEWS; operates comparable academic hydrology/climate research programs in close collaboration with AWI.
• Cooperative Institute for Research to Operations in Hydrology (CIROH) peer — University of Oklahoma CIWATER: Other NOAA-affiliated university water research cooperative institutes operate under similar cooperative-agreement funding structures and target the same federal hydrology research-to-operations mandate as AWI/CIROH. They are directly comparable as academic hydrology research consortia.
• Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere (CIRA) at Colorado State University: NOAA Cooperative Institute hosted at a university with a comparable research-to-operations structure, federal grant dependence, and consortium model — though focused on atmosphere rather than hydrology, the operational model is closely aligned.

Emerging players

• Water Research Foundation: Water-sector research funding organization that sponsors applied drinking water and wastewater research; comparable as a peer funder/coordinator of water research outputs though not a direct laboratory competitor.

Others

• NOAA Office of Water Prediction: Core federal partner and primary funder of CIROH; not a peer in the competitive sense but the central counterpart agency whose priorities directly determine AWI's research agenda.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/alabamawater
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@AlabamaWaterInstitute
• Facebookfacebook.com/AlabamaWaterInstitute
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/alabama-water-institute
• Instagraminstagram.com/alabama_water

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Alabama Water Institute