July 17, 2025the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has released the title “OD-25-132.”Supports the fairness and originality of NIH research applications“.
This policy update addresses the increasing use of artificial intelligence (AI) in grant application preparations and introduces new restrictions on the number of applications the NIH accepts per major investigator (PI) each year.
The following changes aim to maintain the integrity of the peer review process, ensure competitive equity, and maintain higher standards of originality in NIH funding research.
Use in AI applications:
- NIH may support limited aspects of application preparation, but applications Essentially developed by AI It may not be considered original and may be considered non-compliant.
- The use of AI that leads to plagiarism, manufactured citations, or other misconduct can lead to serious consequences, including referrals to the Department of Research Integrity.
Application submission restrictions:
- Effective on September 25th, 2025, NIH Will I'll accept only six people New, Updated, Resubmitted, or Revised Applications Calendar year From an individual PI or multiple PIs. This policy applies to all activity codes except T-Series Training Grants and R13 Conference Grants.
- The restrictions will not apply retroactively to applications submitted by September 25, 2025. Applications submitted between January 1st and September 24th will not count towards the 2025 total.
- From January 1, 2026, calendar year caps will apply without exception.
