The Office of Competitive Research Funds (OCRF) is delighted to formally announce the winners of the Strategic Research Initiative (SRI) competitive funding program, which was launched internationally in December 2010. Two winners were chosen from a 45-strong pool of applications from all over the world in a lengthy process involving rigorous peer review. The program provides each initiative with funding of up to $1.5M annually to explore new areas of research at KAUST in which multiple investigators work collaboratively to focus on a significant research theme over a three-year award term.