December 15, 2023
Dear colleagues,
The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) has published a notice relating to the use of generative AI in the grant review process, which is attached here.
The notice indicates that:
- “NSF reviewers are prohibited from uploading any content from proposals, review information and related records to non-approved generative AI tools.” This is very consistent with NIH guidance on the same issue. Although not all agencies have released regulations, we strongly recommend that you follow the NSF/NIH restriction for review of proposals from other funding sources unless you receive explicit written permission from the relevant program manager.
and
- “Proposers are encouraged to indicate in the project description the extent to which, if any, generative AI technology was used and how it was used to develop their proposal.” This is new, and speaks to NSF’s emerging thinking on the use of GAI in proposal preparation. Indeed, the guidance goes on to state that “NSF is examining the use of GAI in proposal preparation… and may publish further guidelines for use as needed.”
I wanted to make sure you were all aware.
Best regards,
Steve
Stephen Dewhurst, PhD
Vice President for Research