NIH Director’s Transformative Research Awards (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)

Key Facts

Status: Open

Posted date: January 6, 2026

Opportunity ID: 361084

Opportunity number: RFA-RM-26-003

Opportunity category: Discretionary

Agency name: National Institutes of Health

Agency code: HHS-NIH11

Award floor: $0

Award ceiling: $0

Cost sharing required: No

Funding Instrument Types
  • Grant
Category of Funding Activity
  • Health
Eligible Applicants
  • City or township governments
  • County governments
  • For-profit organizations other than small businesses
  • Independent school districts
  • Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized)
  • Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments)
  • Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
  • Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
  • Others
  • Private institutions of higher education
  • Public and State controlled institutions of higher education
  • Small businesses
  • Special district governments
  • State governments
Tools
Categories (use these for quoted searches)
  • agency_code:hhs_nih11
  • category_of_funding_activity:health
  • cost_sharing_or_matching_requirement:false
  • eligible_applicants:city_or_township_governments
  • eligible_applicants:county_governments
  • eligible_applicants:for_profit_organizations_other_than_small_businesses
  • eligible_applicants:independent_school_districts
  • eligible_applicants:native_american_tribal_governments_federally_recognized
  • eligible_applicants:native_american_tribal_organizations_other_than_federally_recognized_tribal_governments
  • eligible_applicants:nonprofits_having_a_501_c_3_status_with_the_irs_other_than_institutions_of_higher_education
  • eligible_applicants:nonprofits_that_do_not_have_a_501_c_3_status_with_the_irs_other_than_institutions_of_higher_education
  • eligible_applicants:others
  • eligible_applicants:private_institutions_of_higher_education
  • eligible_applicants:public_and_state_controlled_institutions_of_higher_education
  • eligible_applicants:small_businesses
  • eligible_applicants:special_district_governments
  • eligible_applicants:state_governments
  • funding_instrument_type:grant
  • opportunity_category:discretionary
  • status:open
Description

The NIH Director’s Transformative Research Award supports individual scientists or groups of scientists proposing bold, groundbreaking, exceptionally innovative, original, and/or unconventional research with the potential to create new scientific paradigms, establish entirely new and improved clinical approaches, or develop transformative technologies. Applications in any area within the biomedical sciences are welcome. No preliminary data are required. Projects must clearly demonstrate, based on the strength of the logic, a compelling potential to produce a major impact in a broad area of relevance to the NIH. The NIH Director’s Transformative Research Award is a component of the High-Risk, High-Reward Research (HRHR) Program of the NIH Common Fund.

NIH Director’s Transformative Research Awards (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)
The NIH Director’s Transformative Research Award supports individual scientists or groups of scientists proposing bold, groundbreaking, exceptionally innovative, original, and/or unconventional research with the potential to create new scientific paradigms, establish entirely new and improved clinical approaches, or develop transformative technologies. Applications in any area within the biomedical sciences are welcome. No preliminary data are required. Projects must clearly demonstrate, based on the strength of the logic, a compelling potential to produce a major impact in a broad area of relevance to the NIH. The NIH Director’s Transformative Research Award is a component of the High-Risk, High-Reward Research (HRHR) Program of the NIH Common Fund.
NIH Director’s Transformative Research Awards (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)
Open
National Institutes of Health
Health
Grant
State governments
County governments
City or township governments
Special district governments
Independent school districts
Public and State controlled institutions of higher education
Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized)
Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments)
Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
Private institutions of higher education
For-profit organizations other than small businesses
Small businesses
Others
2026-01-06