According to a report by Bloomberg, the Trump Administration has recently let go several employees from the National Science Foundation (NSF), all of whom were selected for their exceptional knowledge in the field of AI. This raises concerns about the agency's future ability to conduct critical AI research.

The Directorate for Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships, one of the departments within NSF that has been affected, played a vital role in channeling government grants for AI-centric projects. Consequently, various review panels have either been delayed or completely scrapped due to the layoffs, putting a halt on funding for several AI initiatives.

These sudden staff reductions from the Trump Administration have been met with strong criticism from AI professionals, particularly the cutbacks driven by billionaire Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency. Geoffrey Hinton, a renowned AI innovator and Nobel Laureate, even took to a post on X to express his standpoint — he strongly advocated for the British Royal Society to revoke Musk's membership, stating Musk's actions were causing immense harm to the US' scientific bodies.

Elon Musk, however, offered a rebuttal to Hinton's remarks in a tweet:

History is the true judge of merit, not awards and memberships. I wholeheartedly disagree with your comments, though still welcome constructive critique. If there are specific actions that need rectification, I am willing to admit mistakes and work on correcting them...

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 2, 2025

Embracing humility, Musk responded to assert his willingness to make amends for his errors, while dismissing the allegation of causing harm to scientific institutions.