07/23/2025
By Holly Norton
On July 17, 2025, NIH issued a notice (NOT-OD-25-132) which provides guidance on the appropriate usage of artificial intelligence and implementing a limit on the number of applications submitted per calendar year per Principal Investigator.
According to NOT-OD-25-132, NIH is providing guidance to researchers on the appropriate usage of artificial intelligence (AI) to maintain the fairness and originality of NIH’s research application process. NIH is also instituting a new policy limiting the number of applications that NIH will consider per Principal Investigator per calendar year.
NIH will not consider applications that are either substantially developed by AI, or contain sections substantially developed by AI, to be original ideas of applicants. If the detection of AI is identified post award, NIH may refer the matter to the Office of Research Integrity to determine whether there is research misconduct while simultaneously taking enforcement actions including, but not limited to disallowing costs, withholding future awards, wholly or in part suspending the grant, and possible termination.
NIH will only accept six new, renewal, resubmission, or revision applications from an individual Principal Investigator/Program Director or Multiple Principal Investigator for all council rounds in a calendar year. This policy applies to all activity codes except T activity codes and R13 Conference Grant Applications. Based on recent data, this limit will affect a relatively small number of Principal Investigators while enabling the NIH to maintain consistently high-quality grant application review and appropriately steward taxpayer dollars.
This policy is effective for applications submitted to the Sept. 25, 2025, receipt date and beyond.
Please direct all inquiries to the NIH Office of Science Policy at SciencePolicy@od.nih.gov.