News for Researchers Uncategorized
Posted August 4, 2025 by Ashley Washburn
The National Institutes of Health published a policy July 17 that addresses the use of artificial intelligence in proposals and limits how many applications an individual can submit as a principal investigator or multiple-PI during a calendar year.
NOT-OD-25-132, “Supporting Fairness and Originality in NIH Research Applications,” is effective for applications submitted to the Sept. 25, 2025, receipt date and beyond.
The policy addresses the increasing instances of PIs submitting large volumes of applications, some of which may have been generated by AI. Applications that contain substantial AI-generated content will not be considered as the applicant’s original ideas.
If AI usage is discovered during the post-award stage, the proposal may be further reviewed to determine whether research misconduct has occurred, which could impact current and future NIH awards.
Additionally, NIH will accept only six new, renewal, resubmission or revision applications from an individual PI/program director or multiple PI for all council rounds in a calendar year. This policy applies to all activity codes except T activity codes and R13 conference grant applications. The limit is expected to affect a relatively small number of PIs, “while enabling the NIH to maintain consistently high-quality grant application review and appropriately steward taxpayer dollars,” the notice states. UNL’s Office of Sponsored Programs will not track submissions related to the calendar year limit; each PI is responsible for keeping a record of their submissions.
