The Zhitong Finance App learned that the Trump administration announced on Wednesday that it will invest 5 billion US dollars to launch a large-scale artificial intelligence research program to use AI to overcome long-term scientific problems such as overcoming the root causes of chronic diseases, speeding up drug research and development, and developing more durable building materials. The plan involves 15 federal agencies, including the US Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Energy, the Department of Transportation, the Department of Defense, and the Department of the Interior, and marks the official start of the most thorough transformation of the US federal research system in the past 80 years.
White House chief technical adviser Michael Kratsios (Michael Kratsios) said in an interview that scientists will be able to use the US Department of Energy's supercomputers, artificial intelligence, and specialized data sets, as well as other components needed to run algorithm experiments. Microsoft announced on the same day that it will donate 40 million US dollars worth of AI computing resources over three years to support this plan.
Reconstructing the 200 billion scientific research landscape behind the $5 billion
This $5 billion plan is not an isolated act; it is a core component of the Trump administration's reshaping of the federal research system. According to a new report and memorandum released by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) on Tuesday, these instructions will affect the federal government's annual research and development budget allocation direction for the remainder of Trump's second term.
The new guidelines will completely change the research funding model that has continued for decades. The White House made it clear in its report that the government wants to prioritize support for projects that provide opportunities for individuals rather than directly targeting colleges and universities, such as scholarships and various research awards. The Trump administration believes that spending too much time dealing with bureaucratic matters in government agencies and universities is a key factor hindering America's development. Under the plan, individual researchers at the university will receive direct funding, thereby reducing the direct participation of the university as an intermediary.
In an interview, Crazios said bluntly: “In the past 20 or 30 years, we have become very rigid in terms of research funding. We always think we should continue to fund the same research in the same way and in the same institution.” He said he had met with the head of an Ivy League university on Tuesday about this new funding method for research and received a positive response.
“Genesis Project”: Mobilizing the entire industry chain of the AI version of the Manhattan Project
This $5 billion plan is in line with the “Genesis Mission” (Genesis Mission) previously launched by the Trump administration. The plan is called the “AI version of the Manhattan Project” by the White House. The core goal is to “use artificial intelligence to transform scientific research methods and accelerate the scientific discovery process.”
The “Genesis Project” was launched in December 2025 and has brought together 24 top technology companies including Microsoft, Google, Nvidia, OpenAI, and Amazon Cloud Services (AWS) to participate in the cooperation. The cooperative lineup covers the entire chain from chip design and computing power supply to AI model development. The US Department of Energy has integrated these companies' cutting-edge AI models and supercomputer computing power into the national laboratory system.
At the level of international cooperation, Japan has become the first international partner of the program. On June 4, 2026, the US Department of Energy established a strategic partnership totaling 1 billion US dollars with Japan's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. The two sides will each invest 500 million US dollars over the next five years. The two sides will form 11 joint scientific teams to integrate the resources of 12 national laboratories under the US Department of Energy and 12 major research institutes in Japan, focusing on promoting research in fields such as quantum information science, fusion energy, biotechnology, advanced materials, particle physics, and autonomous laboratory systems. The joint research team will have the right to use the US Department of Energy's high-performance computing system and Japan's “Fugaku” supercomputer.
The US government has also recently set more ambitious national goals, including deploying a powerful quantum computer by 2028 and starting construction of 10 new large-scale nuclear reactors by 2030 to increase power supply capacity.
New Rules of “Political Responsibility”: Dispute over the Right to Approve Research Funding
The White House report written by Crazios clearly states that “the federal government's support for science must be politically responsible”. This statement heralds a fundamental shift in the federal research funding approval mechanism.
A new regulation proposed by the White House Office of Management and Budget would give politically appointed officials more power to approve funding for research, and align the direction of research with government policy priorities. The move sparked a strong backlash from the scientific community. Critics warn that the AI model itself is error-prone, and that excessive emphasis on the technology could limit the type of research researchers are undertaking.
Congressional Democrats have clearly objected to this. Congressman Debbie Dingell proposed a resolution warning that the proposal would “inject politics into the federal research funding process and weaken the long-standing peer-review system.” Senators Sheldon Whitehouse and Jack Reed sent a joint letter to the White House Office of Management and Budget strongly opposing this plan to “politicize federal funding”, saying it “exceeds OMB's authority.”
This is not the first time this controversy has arisen. In May of this year, the Trump administration took action to give politically-appointed officials greater control over federal agencies' multi-billion dollar funding allocations. Scientists warned at the time that this move would put “critical research funding into the hands of party members lacking relevant expertise.” The federal court has previously rejected the Trump administration's attempt to cut federal funding for universities from the US National Institutes of Health. An appeal panel ruled in January that the administration has no authority to unilaterally cut related funding.
Potential market impact
Industrial layout: all-round betting from AI equity to computing power infrastructure
The Trump administration's AI strategy is being fully extended from the research side to the industrial side. In addition to the “Genesis Project”, the government is also promoting the development of the AI industry in multiple dimensions:
AI National Shareholding Concept: Trump said last month that he is exploring ways for US taxpayers to hold shares in leading AI companies, saying this may be a “beautiful thing” and will make the public “partners in this revolution.” OpenAI has reportedly proposed to the government to transfer 5% of its shares.
Computing power energy security: AI giants such as Google (GOOGL.US), Microsoft (MSFT.US), and OpenAI have promised to pay out of their own pockets to cover data center electricity costs to avoid driving up electricity prices for US households. America's largest utility companies and data center developers have signed promises from the Trump administration to pay more for the energy needed to run the big language model.
Export plans are getting cold: However, the first round of the “US Artificial Intelligence Export Program”, which promotes the global export of US AI technology, received only 78 applications, and it did not start well.
Long-term benefits of AI infrastructure and scientific research services
The announcement of the Trump administration's $5 billion AI research program is potentially beneficial to several capital market sectors.
AI computing power infrastructure: The “Genesis Project”'s continued demand for supercomputers and AI chips directly benefits chip manufacturers such as Nvidia (NVDA.US) and AMD (AMD.US). The deep participation of 24 tech giants also means that cloud computing platforms such as AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud will continue to receive government computing power orders.
Research software and services: A shift in funding models directly aimed at individual scientists may spawn a number of research management, AI modeling, and data analysis tools and service providers for independent researchers.
Quantum Computing and Frontier Technology: The goal of deploying quantum computers by 2028 provides policy endorsement for quantum computing concept stocks such as IonQ (IONQ.US) and Rigetti Computing (RGTI.US).
Biotechnology and materials science: The $5 billion plan clearly focuses on fields such as chronic diseases, drug development, and construction materials. Relevant biotechnology and advanced materials companies are expected to receive government contracts and funding.
However, fundamental changes in the mechanism for allocating funding for research have also brought uncertainty. Universities and research institutions may face the risk of reduced federal funding, and market expectations that the intervention of politically appointed officials in the approval of research funding may change the direction of research.