The White House has released "Science: A New Golden Age," the most ambitious rethinking of U.S. science and technology policy since Vannevar Bush's landmark 1945 report "Science: The Endless Frontier." The blueprint, authored by White House science adviser Michael Kratsios, calls for a dramatic reallocation of federal research funding — shifting hundreds of billions of dollars from universities toward industry, with artificial intelligence at the center of the new vision.
The report, published July 22 and now drawing intense reaction across the scientific community, organizes its recommendations around four pillars: revitalizing the R&D enterprise, securing dominance in critical technologies, launching an AI-powered "Golden Age for Science," and ensuring broad economic returns from discovery.
The Genesis Mission: AI as the Engine of Discovery
The centerpiece of the plan is the Genesis Mission, a flagship national AI-for-science initiative designed to "double the productivity of American research through AI." The initiative would fund the development of domain-specific scientific foundation models, high-value datasets, AI-enabled autonomous laboratories, and a transition toward "AI-native scientific institutions."
Other priority missions include the Quantum Computer for Application Development and Discovery Science (QC-ADDS), commercial fusion power demonstration by the mid-2030s, and next-generation semiconductor technologies.
From Universities to Industry
The most contentious aspect of the report is its call to refocus support on "individual scientists rather than legacy institutions" and diversify funding mechanisms "beyond slow consensus peer review." Critics interpret this as a direct challenge to the university-centered research ecosystem that has dominated American science since World War II.
"The report acknowledges problems scientists have long attempted to grapple with," STAT News reported, "but advocates and scientists expressed concern that the report's espoused goal of improving science is being undermined by other administration actions, chiefly the grievances expressed by President Trump against immigration, universities, and programs that promote diversity, equity, and inclusion."
Implementation Begins Immediately
Federal R&D agencies now have 90 days to submit action plans implementing the new priorities, which will be reflected in their Fiscal Year 2028 budget submissions to the Office of Management and Budget. The White House has also issued a formal R&D Priorities Memorandum jointly signed by Kratsios and OMB Director Russ Vought.
The blueprint arrives amid broader tensions between the administration and the academic research community, including proposed cuts to NIH funding and restrictions on international scientific collaborations. Supporters argue the plan modernizes a system that has grown sclerotic; critics warn it risks dismantling the very institutions that made American science the world's gold standard.
