iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Kicking science journalists out of MAHA events? Seems to be a familiar playbook. I'm sorry this happened to you @sherylnyt.bsky.social bsky.app/profile/maxk...

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Yes this was one of the sham societies we investigated as part of the network! The same person uploaded the doctored RASNZ picture to Google Maps also uploaded the doctored European Academy of Engineering one we report on in the story

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

The deception ran so deep it fooled major institutions. Dozens of top universities published press releases celebrating these fake honors, and the US National Academies of Sciences even sent a newsletter to its members, congratulating 51 of them on being elected to the EAE.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

The National Academy of Artificial Intelligence charges a $600 initiation fee for full membership. It even advertises a "virtual PhD" for $10,000 and a "virtual postdoc" for $2,000. In return, you get a digital membership card and an official certificate designed for LinkedIn thenaai.org/phd

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

We uncovered a sprawling network of sham academies using digitally manipulated photos, plagiarized content and scientists' identities without their consent eg The "European Academy of Engineering", supposedly headquarted in Sweden, was actually using a doctored photo of the University of Gothenburg

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

New: NIH's ban on funding projects in South Africa has been lifted. The ban was tied to a Feb 7, 2025 executive order directing agencies to halt foreign aid to South Africa. 18 months later, the agency has determined that grants don't constitute aid, so it was never subject to the EO.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

Archiving for posterity: The CDC's own website still says that combination vaccines, including the MMR, are safe and effective. All eyes will be on new CDC director Erica Schwartz to see if this page is altered to comply with Trump's order yesterday. www.cdc.gov/vaccine-safe...

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 10/08/2026

Stay for the bloopers at the end 👀

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 27/06/2026

According to internal data I obtained, only 57% of these non-competing grant renewals entering Status 19 in FY26 cleared within 10 days. During the same period over the previous three years, that number was over 95%. And the last 10% of the 'problem' applications can stay stuck for months on end.

$HOLDING PATTERN After approval from agency scientists, applications for US National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants move into 'Status 19', the internal designation for an award that has been fully prepared but not yet funded. Over the past year, officials at the NIH and its parent agency have begun additional scrutiny at this stage. Many applications that enter Status 19 are approved after a short delay. But a small fraction - especially applications for 'non-competing renewals' - are still being held back after two months.$

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 18/05/2026

NIAID employees did not receive any communication about these leadership changes until this afternoon, when the institute sent out an unsigned email.

NIAlD announces several important leadership transitions affecting the Institute.

Dr. Daniel Rotrosen, who has served for nearly three decades as a senior scientific leader

and Director of NIAID's Division of Allergy, Immunology, and Transplantation, will assume a,new role within the NIH Office of Program Coordination, Planning, and Strategic Initiatives (DPCPSI). Throughout his distinguished career, Dr. Rotrosen has provided exceptional leadership in advancing immunology, transplantation, and infectious disease research while helping shape scientific strategy and foster collaboration across NIH and the broader research community. His steady guidance, scientific expertise, and commitment to public service have had a profound and lasting impact on NIAID and biomedical research worldwide.

In addition, Dr. Kelly Poe, Director of NIAID's Division of Extramural Activities, and Dr. Andrea Wurster, Deputy Director of the Division of Extramural Activities, will assume new assignments at the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD). Together, Drs. Poe and Wurster have played critical leadership roles in overseeing NIAID's extramural research portfolio, grants administration, and policy operations. Their dedication to scientific stewardship, operational excellence, and service to the research community has strengthened NIAID's ability to support groundbreaking research while upholding the highest standards of accountability and integrity.

These transitions help address important leadership and operational needs across NIH, where the scientific, administrative, and professional expertise of Drs. Rotrosen, Poe, and Wurster will continue to support critical priorities and strengthen collaboration across the broader NIH enterprise. Their experience and leadership are highly valued and greatly needed in their new organizations.

During times of transition, it is important to acknowledge both the professionalism of those affected and the uncertainty that organizational changes can create for colleagues and teams. NIAID remains deeply appreciative of the dedication, expertise, and public service demonstrated by Drs. Rotrosen, Poe, and Wurster throughout their careers at the Institute.

At the same time, NIAID's mission continues uninterrupted. The Institute remains committed to advancing discovery, supporting the scientific workforce, and improving public health. Leadership is working closely with affected offices to support continuity of operations and ensure that staff, investigators, ar d partners continue to receive the guidance and support they need during this period of transition.

NIAID extends its sincere appreciation to Drs. Rotrosen, Poe, and Wurster for their many years of dedicated service and leadership and

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 14/05/2026

As a backdrop: the NIH has awarded less than half the number of new grants it had handed out by this time compared with the average of the previous five years (yes that includes 2025's tumultuous grantmaking year!)

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 29/04/2026

The Trump adminstration has said that it believes in 'radical transparency'. On advisory committees, the data don't support that: The number of open meetings — where the public can actually observe these deliberations — has dropped by more than 50% for some agencies.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 29/04/2026

The scope of these terminations is unprecedented. At RFK Jr's HHS alone, 77 advisory boards were disbanded in 2025 — more than a quarter of all the panels. For context: in 2024, HHS terminated just two. Among the casualties: panels on organ transplantation, dietary guidelines, and long COVID.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 16/04/2026

The numbers back up this shift. 314 Action, a PAC supporting Dem scientists, typically receives about 250 applications in an election cycle. This year? They received more than 700 —nearly triple their usual volume. The exodus from the lab to the ballot box is unprecedented. 📊👇

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 18/03/2026

Saying it loudly for the folks in the back: Cuts to announcements of funding opportunities are NOT the same thing as cuts to funding. I've covered funding cuts, and will continue to do so, but for the most part* this issue is separate. *Some NOFOs have funding tied to them and have been delayed.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 18/03/2026

A Redditor asked good questions about the story. 1) How concerned are scientists that this introduces more political influence? 2) Will these changes cut overall spending? 3) What didn’t make it into the article? 4) What research areas are most likely to win and lose from this change? My answers ⬇️

Redditor user Ntroepy asks:
Thank you - excellent article.

I had a few followup questions:

The change appears to require White House–appointed officials to approve funding calls alongside the existing scientific review structure. In your reporting, how concerned are scientists that this introduces political influence into what has traditionally been a peer-driven process? Are there specific research areas people worry could be deprioritized as a result?

Your article focuses on changes to how funding is allocated, but says less about the total NIH budget. Do the experts you interviewed see these changes as a strategic shift or a way to cut overall spending?

What are scientists and policy experts saying privately about this shift that didn’t make it into the article?

Which areas of research are most likely to benefit from this change, and which are most at risk of losing support?

My response:

Thanks for reading! All great questions.

Very worried. Funding calls for disfavored research (eg anything 'DEI' related) were among the first to go.

There are many strategic ways to cut overall spending, but this is probably not going to be the main way, unless all funding calls are shut down. Still, there are certain funding calls (RFAs) that have funds set aside for them. So if they continue to be delayed, agency staff will have little time to handle the review for those applications and get the money out the door before hte funds expire. Other problems will likely be a bigger factor this year: OMB withholding NIH's apportionment for 43 days, the record-long shutdown, and a lack of NIH personnel to process awards).

Reasonable minds can disagree on what the balance of investigator-initiated vs solicited applications looks like. That's a good conversation to be having, scientists say. But what ideally would help to guide the conversation is some quantitative data that support this abrupt move -- that broad unsolicited calls are indeed more efficient and spur more innovation, as the NIH has said they are. (NIH did not respond to my query about this.)

The shift toward broad, unsolicited grants will likely benefit foundational biology, high-risk "edge science," and well-established labs capable of competing for unrestricted funds. The rollback of targeted funding threatens to stall translational drug development and massive clinical networks that rely on top-down agency coordination. Research into rare diseases and health equity is also highly vulnerable, as the protective silos and specific mandates that historically supported these fields are dismantled. And early-career scientists risk being squeezed out of the system, as the loss of dedicated funding avenues forces them to compete directly against veteran researchers for the same dollars.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 17/03/2026

The NIH typically an average of 780 notices of funding opportunities (NOFOs) a year. In the 14 months since Trump came into office, the NIH has posted a grand total of 84. That drop is "striking" says Michael Lauer, former deputy director for extramural research for 15 years at the NIH.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 13/03/2026

I got excited when I saw that NIH might have received its first apportionment from OMB today. Alas, it's for ARPA-H. OMB still has not given NIH a dime for non-salary, non-emergency expenses from the spending bill that was signed into law on Feb 3.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

For extra reading about this issue, I recommend checking out the @centeronbudget.bsky.social report, "Trump Administration Abused Spending Safeguards to Advance Its Agenda — and Illegally Hid Its Actions" You know it's bad when the whole case study about weaponizing apportionment is about NIH

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 02/03/2026

It's a pretty funny criticism because 1) the data are sourced from a public database, NIH RePORTER 2) "Deranged activist" Jeremy Berg was an NIH institute director for 7 years and most importantly 3) Thacker admits the story is totally accurate

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

The impact is already hitting science agencies hard. The NIH—the world's largest public biomedical research funder—has had to rely on leftover stopgap funds. New grant awards have slowed to a trickle — exacerbating the effects of a record-long shutdown in October. (h/t @jeremymberg.bsky.social)

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 24/02/2026

I'm a monthly donor to @51st.news because I care about local news written by and for local DC residents. 🙏

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 20/02/2026

Why do curling stones slide across ice the way they do? After a century of study, physicists have theories — but they’re still not 100% sure. Stellar lede from @jennaahart.bsky.social Read the full story in @nature.com: www.nature.com/articles/d41...

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 18/02/2026

Although my article never asserts a banned word list, a Senate committee chaired by Bernie Sanders certainly does make that assertion in its report, "Putting Cures Out of Reach: Trump's National Institutes of Health" (see appendix) www.sanders.senate.gov/wp-content/u...

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 18/02/2026

NIH director Bhattacharya responds to my article on X, calling it misleading. He denies that there is a "banned words list" The only problem: My article never asserts there's a banned words list at NIH. I report that NIAID staff have been directed to modify "biodefense" and "pandemic preparedness".

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 12/02/2026

Here's the email announcing her departure to her NIAMS colleagues.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 06/02/2026

Cognizant of my oath, I’ve framed the limited question before us and answered it. And I’ve (reluctantly) left others for tomorrow.” On a lighter note, he includes a lengthy and wryly-worded rant about Rubio's obsession over the Calibri font.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 30/01/2026

I'm at the Willard Hotel where I've been denied entry and kicked out of the Reclaiming Science event with NIH director Bhattacharya & other top agency leaders. @jocelynkaiser.bsky.social and I registered for the event months ago yet were told capacity was full, even as they let in dozens of others.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 22/01/2026

Membership on step #2 (advisory councils) has been dwindling as members serve out their terms without replacements being appointed. At 12 of the institutes and one of the centres, the last voting member’s term will expire this year, and it typically takes years for new members to be onboarded.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 21/01/2026

Don't scroll too fast or you'll miss this stunning graphic by @kimay.bsky.social. What appears to be a circuitboard is actually a constellation of every single NIH/NSF grant that's been frozen or cut.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 20/01/2026

The charts in the story are just jaw-dropping. Take this one, showing the bludgeon the Trump admin has taken to the federal scientific workforce.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 14/01/2026

Some analysis from @jeff-tollefson.bsky.social, @dangaristo.bsky.social and me US science budgets are being finalized — and the cuts likely won't be as dramatic as Trump would have wanted. But political appointees will now have a big say in how that funding is spent. www.nature.com/articles/d41...

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 13/01/2026

Could mpox impact male fertility? One ominous finding — with all the caveats that this was done in rodents — is that the same strain responsible for the 2022 global outbreak persisted in the testes of mice for weeks after infection and caused tissue damage, impacting their ability to create sperm.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 21/11/2025

My favorite part was they had the standard shitty conference coffee. But they labelled as "organic coffee" This self-described 'MAHA mom' took issue with the tortilla chips they served www.themahareport.com/p/inside-the...

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 21/11/2025

And yes, the swag bags. Attendees received MAHA-branded tote bags with: - Packets of creatine - Beef tallow potato chips ($79 for a 6-pack!!) - Mouth tape - RFK Jr's biography - Beef protein bars

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 21/11/2025

About that exclusive, "closed-to-press" MAHA summit last week with RFK and JD Vance: I got in. Here's what I saw. 🧵 🧪 www.nature.com/articles/d41...

A glorious selfie with the official MAHA lanyard seconds after I made it past Secret Service screening.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 11/11/2025

There's an exclusive, closed-to-media MAHA summit tomorrow. Here's the full agenda I was leaked In attendance will be JD Vance, RFK Jr, Bhattacharya, Makary, actor Russell Brand (who is facing rape and sexual assault charges), and dozens of other MAHA influencers and people in Trump's orbit

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 17/10/2025

He's not just friends with JD Vance — Vance officiated his wedding! sontagfoundation.org/grantee_stor...

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 29/09/2025

Several scientists have received letters from the NIH director disinviting them from their positions on advisory councils that make final decisions on grant funding, I'm told. In July, I reported that NIH staff were told to select members aligned with Trump administration priorities.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 05/09/2025

My full story on today's hearing with @marilenharo.bsky.social bsky.app/profile/natu...

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 03/09/2025

Some serious shade being thrown at Gorsuch in the NIH grant cuts case, where he chastised lower-court judges for defying SCOTUS's emergency rulings. "That said, the Supreme Court’s recent emergency docket rulings regarding grant terminations have not been models of clarity," Judge Burroughs writes.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 05/08/2025

NEW: A federal judge has demanded NSF explain in court how the UCLA grant suspensions are not in violation of her June order that restored grants to UC scientists

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 31/07/2025

Interesting adopted amendment from Sen Reed re. clinical trials abroad targeted by the NIH's ban on foreign subawards. The amendment allows "reimbursements and other funding arrangements with research partners abroad to foster pediatric cancer, rare disease, HIV and infectious disease research."

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 31/07/2025

Here's the Baldwin amendment that DOES effectively prevent NIH from implementing multi-year funding. Deleted my previous post; the amendments hadn't been posted yet. h/t @davidimiller.bsky.social

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 20/07/2025

A three-judge First Circuit panel has unanimously denied the Trump administration's request to pause the judgment that restored hundreds of NIH grants.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 15/07/2025

These soon-to-be-disinvited scientists have effectively been ghosted by the NIH as staff have pushed for them to be approved to no avail. Many are finding out they won't be serving through yesterday's article. Case in point: This sweet (and sad) email I received last night.

Re: Exclusive: NIH to dismiss dozens of grant reviewers to align with Trump priorities! Hi Max, I just saw this article and I am so glad you wrote it. I was actually appointed to the [redacted] advisory council last fall, and interviewed with the [redacted] Director in September and ever since November, I have completely lost email communication. I was set to be appointed - they had my CV and everything. I have heard nothing, I checked with the people that appointed me and they don't know anything either. I was really excited for it, and I have no idea what is going to happen but I have resigned myself to not get my hopes up. I have done a lot of work on minority health, so I guess I will not be making it past this new round of "inclusion criteria". I don't know if that was helpful for you at all, but I just wanted to say thanks for writing this because I have felt like I am in the dark with the advisory councils now.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 15/07/2025

These researchers were all nominated under Biden's NIH. The move will leave councils at most NIH institutes seriously understaffed: NCATS only has 3 of its 18 slots filled and will be down to only 1 in November. More than half of these slots across NIH are empty, compared to <25% in Jan 2023.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 08/07/2025

Why are enforcement plans important? Grant money goes to institutions and they disburse funds to research as they see fit. Meaning the govt has no idea how much goes to these fees let alone trying to cap them, esp because researchers often don't pay list price.

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Max Kozlov @maxkozlov.bsky.social · 03/07/2025

Here's Memoli "reviewing" in 6 minutes 6 grants flagged by a DOGE member to cut. Must be a quick reader! And then Judge Young roasts Memoli for saying research on gender identity is "often scientific" without any proof. "Ironically, these kinds of phrases would never survive peer review," he writes

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