A major objective of the National Science Foundation (NSF) is to improve the nation's capacity for intellectual and economic growth by increasing the number of industrial partnerships and collaborations. By serving as a catalyst for industry-university partnerships, NSF helps ensure that intellectual capital and emerging technologies are brought together in ways that promote economic growth and an improved quality of life. Benefits to universities may include extensions to in-house research capabilities, alignment of efforts with viable technology options; direct and more immediate impact on technology and its design infrastructure; and the training of students for industrial positions. Possible benefits for industry include more research-intensive activities, investigations of high-risk ideas, increased efforts towards research, shortening the research and development cycles, training students for future employment, and vetting of future hires.

To meet this objective, the GOALI program seeks to stimulate interactions and staff exchange between universities and industry. For example, faculty, postdoctoral fellows, and students are encouraged to develop creative modes of collaborative interactions with industry through individual or small-group projects, and industry-based fellowships or traineeships for students and post-doctoral fellows.