White House Lays Out ‘Golden Age’ AI Vision for American Science

White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy Director Michael Kratsios told lawmakers Wednesday that the administration wants to fundamentally reshape how the federal government conducts and funds scientific research, with artificial intelligence serving as the cornerstone of a new national strategy.

The office unveiled a new roadmap this week for reshaping the federal research enterprise and cementing American scientific leadership. Kratsios said his report, “Science: A New American Golden Age,” is centered on the expanded use of AI, new grant-making models and a governmentwide initiative intended to accelerate scientific discovery.

“Our economic leadership and technological dominance cannot be taken for granted in a rapidly changing world. The United States no longer stands alone as an industrial and scientific superpower, unleashing a golden age of American science requires new focus and reforms,” Kratsios said Wednesday during a House Committee on Science Space & Tech hearing.

He added that the administration’s fiscal year 2027 science and technology priorities are designed to modernize how the federal government funds and conducts research rather than simply increase spending. The strategy, along with a companion research and development priorities memorandum to guide federal agencies, includes:

• Making the Genesis Mission the federal government’s central hub for AI-driven scientific research. The initiative builds on the Energy Department’s work while incorporating efforts from the Departments of War, Health and Human Services and other agencies. The initiatives represent more than $5 billion in commitments to build what Kratsios called the world’s premier AI-for-science ecosystem. “Artificial intelligence is probably the biggest unlock in human history in our ability to drive scientific discovery,” Kratsios told the committee.
• Changing the way federal research funding is awarded. Instead of one-size-fits-all approach, the government can deploy more flexible types of grants, including fast-track grants, long-horizon grants and a new mechanism that allow reviewers to champion radically unconventional proposals.
• Prioritizing individual scientists over legacy institutions. Kratsios said supporting a broader range of “performers, including a new generation of mission-driven research organizations,” can expand scientific horizons.
• Setting clear scientific goals and building “industrial muscle” to translate scientific discovery into technological strength.

Committee Republicans largely focused their questions on the administration’s AI strategy, research integrity initiatives and efforts to maintain U.S. technological leadership. Rep. Jay Obernolte asked about the newly authorized Center for AI Security and Innovation at NIST, and questioned whether it had the funding needed to do its job.

Kratsios said NIST’s AI evaluation efforts would benefit from additional resources, citing the difficulty of recruiting AI experts into government service.

Democratic lawmakers, meanwhile, questioned the administration’s handling of the National Science Foundation, and whether revisions to federal grant guidance review processes would increase political influence over research funding decisions.

Kratsios defended the administration’s proposed funding reforms, arguing that traditional peer review can discourage more ambitious research proposals and that new funding mechanisms are intended to encourage innovative ideas while maintaining merit-based review.