Martin A. Nowak

1. Summary#

Martin A. Nowak is an Austrian-born professor of biology and mathematics at Harvard University, where he founded and directed the Program for Evolutionary Dynamics (PED). PED was established with a major gift from Jeffrey Epstein's foundation, reported at $6.5 million in a 2019 New York Times article (with other sources citing up to $35 million). Nowak's relationship with Epstein spanned nearly two decades and was among the most extensive in Epstein's academic network, encompassing 7,469 emails and 4,481 shared emails with Epstein dating from at least 2009 through the weeks before Epstein's July 2019 arrest.

The archive documents Nowak as a central node in Epstein's scientific circle. He hosted Epstein at PED's offices at One Brattle Square in Cambridge on numerous occasions, organized meetings between Epstein and prominent scientists, facilitated donations to PED, visited Epstein's private island Little St. James and his New Mexico ranch, and maintained regular intellectual correspondence with Epstein on topics in evolutionary biology, mathematics, and language. In May 2019, as scrutiny of Epstein's relationships intensified, Nowak urgently requested that references to PED be removed from Epstein's personal website. Nowak's co-correspondents include Lesley Groff, Joi Ito, Joscha Bach, Karyna Shuliak, and Danny Hillis, among many others in Epstein's network.

2. Background#

Martin A. Nowak is a mathematical biologist and professor at Harvard University, where he holds joint appointments in the departments of Biology, Mathematics, and Organismic and Evolutionary Biology. Born in Austria, Nowak earned his doctorate at the University of Vienna and held positions at the University of Oxford and the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton before joining Harvard. He is known for applying mathematical models to biological phenomena including evolution, cancer, cooperation, and language.

In 2003, Nowak founded the Program for Evolutionary Dynamics (PED) at Harvard, which became one of the first academic centers to apply mathematical modeling to evolutionary processes in molecular biology. The program was substantially funded by Epstein's philanthropy. As reported in the New York Times article clipped in the SDNY news files, Epstein "hosted buffet lunches at Harvard's Program for Evolutionary Dynamics, which he had helped start with a $6.5 million donation". A Huffington Post article saved in Epstein's archive described the foundation's 2003 gift as $35 million. Nowak's PED publications list, found in the archive, documents extensive research output spanning cancer evolution, HIV dynamics, game theory, and language evolution.

The same New York Times article identified Nowak as one of the Harvard colleagues who invited the cognitive psychologist Steven Pinker to "salons and coffee klatsches" that Epstein held. In 2019, Harvard conducted a review of its relationship with Epstein and his donations. Nowak appeared on Epstein's list of scientists maintained by assistant Lesley Groff, alongside figures including Marvin Minsky, Lawrence Krauss, Seth Lloyd, George Church, and Danny Hillis.

3. Correspondence with Epstein#

Volume and Timeframe

Nowak's correspondence with Epstein is among the largest in the archive, spanning 7,469 total emails with 4,481 shared with Epstein directly. The documented emails range from at least 2009 through June 2019, though the relationship preceded the archive's coverage — a 2003 Huffington Post piece dates Epstein's initial PED funding to that year. Communication continued until weeks before Epstein's July 6, 2019, arrest.

Intellectual Exchange

A substantial portion of the correspondence consists of intellectual discussion. In November 2010, Nowak wrote to Epstein: "let us work on a new theory for biology let us build something so grand and ambitious that its supremacy will never be challenged", to which Epstein replied, "great idea .. lets do it." Nowak followed up with reflections on "a duality between signals and games" and what generates an "open biological universe." In another message that month, Nowak observed: "i realize there are very few operations that construct all of biology". He also shared cultural material, such as a YouTube link to "Lili Marlene".

Nowak connected Epstein to statistician Donald Rubin, who noted in December 2016 that "Martin has put us in touch" and discussed topics including placebo effects and FDA drug approval, with Rubin noting he thought Epstein had "some potential" for statistics.

Funding and Donations

The archive contains detailed documentation of Epstein's financial support for PED. In July 2010, Nowak sent Epstein a draft donation letter addressed to Harvard's Office of the Recording Secretary, with a blank dollar amount, stating the gift would support "maintenance of space and occupancy, equipment, supplies and administrative staff, and contribute towards research staff, students, visitors and events" at PED. In April 2011, Nowak forwarded a completed donation letter from Henry Jarecki and told Epstein: "if a donation for PED is submitted like this, then there is no complicated bureaucracy at harvard."

In December 2014, Epstein drafted a letter to Harvard's Recording Secretary proposing a $3,000,000 donation to PED, with $1 million to be paid that year and the balance in 2015. A separate version of the letter noted "this would mean 1 million this year and 2million anytime you wanted next year". The letter template used by Jarecki and Epstein was virtually identical, with language praising Nowak's "contributions to mathematical biology and evolutionary dynamics."

Organizing Scientific Visits and Meetings

Nowak served as a primary organizer for Epstein's visits to Harvard's campus, arranging schedules and recruiting colleagues to meet with Epstein. For a January 2013 visit, Nowak added appointments with Mike Hopkins, Jack Szostak, and Andy Knoll to a schedule that already included Seth Lloyd, Marvin Minsky, Henry Rosovsky, George Church, Howard Gardner, and David Gergen. In April 2018, a detailed schedule placed Epstein at Harvard Kennedy School with Larry Summers from 10–11:15am, then at Nowak's office to meet Danny Hillis, then Joi Ito. A May 2018 visit was rescheduled to Sunday May 6th, with Nowak's coordinator Katherine Gallagher checking whether mathematician Mike Hopkins could also attend.

On October 15, 2018, Epstein visited PED for a full day. Nowak organized a detailed schedule: an 11:30am appointment with Nowak, a 2pm meeting with John De La Parra, a 3:30pm meeting with Joscha Bach, 5:30pm "Snacks w/ Larry Summers" at Nowak's office, and 7pm "Dinner w/ Joi" also at Nowak's office. Lesley Groff's assistant had a key to Nowak's office and was granted access that morning. On August 6, 2016, Epstein visited and met with Nowak, Joi Ito, Noam Chomsky, and Stephen Wolfram at PED.

Nowak also facilitated Epstein's use of PED facilities even in his absence. In April 2013, when Nowak was in Korea, Epstein still planned to "hold his meetings in martins office", using a key and elevator proximity card maintained by staff. In June 2017, Epstein asked Nowak whether PED was "open on friday fro me to have lunch with chomsky thre", and Nowak's coordinator Katherine Gallagher arranged the visit.

A November 30, 2014 dinner at Nowak's office brought together Joi Ito, Reid Hoffman, George Church, Martin Nowak, Larry Summers, and Danny Hillis, with Epstein meeting Larry Summers one-on-one immediately afterward.

Effort to Remove PED from Epstein's Website

In May 2019, with public scrutiny of Epstein's relationships mounting, Nowak moved urgently to distance PED from Epstein's public profile. On May 7, 2019, Nowak wrote to Lesley Groff asking her to "remove PED from this website", linking to jeffreyepstein.org and noting "i discussed with jeffrey today". He also sent a separate link to the main Epstein biography page. By May 10, 2019, having received no confirmation of removal, Nowak wrote again with increased urgency: "Did you make progress to removing PED from the website? The sooner the better please. Things are getting very strange here. It would also help us if you could briefly inactivate the website until it is rewritten". Groff responded that the website "is not ours so we are sending a legal letter", and Rich Kahn was brought in to assist.

Late Correspondence (June 2019)

As late as June 7, 2019 — one month before Epstein's arrest — Nowak was still connecting Epstein with intellectuals, introducing him to writer David Berlinski "regarding another meeting in Paris" on "foundations of mathematics, logic or language". Epstein responded that he would be "in paris all wee of the 16th", and Nowak reported that "David gave awesome talk this morning. Truth is ineffable. Mind is not a machine".

Personal Correspondence

The archive includes personal messages reflecting a close relationship. Nowak texted Epstein on May 16, 2019: "I'm in Atlanta (by mistake)", followed by "Back tomorrow". In November 2010, Nowak called Lesley Groff to reach Epstein, saying "it is sad". Epstein, for his part, texted Nowak alongside "Sarah" about sitting across from Detective Recarey, the Palm Beach detective who investigated him, calling him "very nervous, very strange."

4. Connections#

Nowak's co-correspondent network maps the core of Epstein's scientific circle:

• Jeffrey Epstein: 4,481 shared emails; Nowak's primary correspondent, spanning intellectual discussions, funding logistics, and visit coordination.
• Lesley Groff: 1,148 shared emails. Epstein's executive assistant, who coordinated Nowak's travel, managed PED website removal requests, and organized Epstein's Harvard visits.
• Joi Ito: 336 shared emails. Then-director of the MIT Media Lab; frequently co-attended meetings and dinners at PED with Nowak and Epstein (October 2018 schedule, November 2014 dinner).
• Joscha Bach: 238 shared emails. AI researcher who visited PED for meetings with Epstein, including the October 2018 visit and a February 2019 trip where Bach "Changed the flight, and can visit PED on the 21st!".
• Karyna Shuliak: 108 shared emails. Epstein's girlfriend who often traveled with him to Harvard, carrying elevator access cards and handling logistics.
• Katherine Gallagher: 87 shared emails. Nowak's PED coordinator, who scheduled Epstein's visits and arranged for others to meet him at PED.
• Donald Rubin: 38 shared emails. Harvard statistics professor introduced to Epstein by Nowak in December 2016.
• Corina Tarnita: 44 shared emails. A former PED researcher whom Epstein invited to visit his island alongside Nowak.
• Ghislaine Maxwell: Maxwell sent Nowak a personal email asking about a horse-riding video. In a reply, a "James" wrote to Maxwell: "i had such a beautiful time with you that i am now totally sad... at the island i want to go for a moonlight swim", and Maxwell responded: "Be bad". (The "James" sender appears to be a misattribution in the thread metadata; the emails are addressed to Nowak's mailbox.) In a separate email to Maxwell, Nowak wrote: "dear ghislaine, many thanks again for your amazing hospitality. i am so very sorry i caused you so much worry and that i spoilt this day. i am so happy that i did not kill anybody. my perspective of life has changed somehow...". The context of what Nowak did that caused Maxwell "so much worry" and what led him to express relief that he "did not kill anybody" is not explained in the correspondence and has been the subject of widespread public speculation.
• Shing-Tung Yau: Harvard mathematician whom Nowak introduced to Epstein's circle in May 2019, prompting discussions of a joint brain research and AI center at Tsinghua University in China.

5. Document References#

Nowak appears in SDNY news clips compiled by DOJ prosecutors, specifically a July 31, 2019, New York Times article entitled "Jeffrey Epstein Hoped to Seed Human Race With His DNA," which names Nowak as a Harvard professor who invited colleagues to "salons and coffee klatsches" that Epstein held. The article describes Epstein's interest in eugenics and transhumanism and his cultivation of elite scientists. A Huffington Post article saved by Epstein to his own email describes his foundation's $35 million gift establishing PED and names Nowak as a principal beneficiary.

Epstein's list of scientists, compiled by Lesley Groff in June 2010, includes Nowak with the notation "(Corrina)" alongside his home, cell, and work contact information. The list also includes Corina Tarnita's separate contact details. A separate publications list of PED spanning 2003–2008 was preserved in the DOJ files. Draft donation letters to Harvard and finalized $3 million pledge letters from December 2014 are also in the document archive.

A copy of the published academic paper "Spontaneous giving and calculated greed" by David G. Rand, Joshua D. Greene, and Martin A. Nowak was found in the archive, reflecting PED's research on cooperation and decision-making.

6. Visits to Epstein Properties#

Little St. James Island

1. Late December 2012 (planned; postponed to January 2013) — Lesley Groff booked a JetBlue ticket for Nowak from Boston to St. Thomas on December 29, 2012, with instructions that "Jermaine Ruan will be at the airport to bring you up, to take you to the Red Hook Marina where we will bring you over to Little St James via boat." Epstein postponed the visit; Nowak wrote "jeffrey has emailed me to say that he wants to postpone my visit. we are now planning for 5-8 jan". The island manager responded: "look forward to seeing you on the 5th."
2. September 2010 (discussed; rescheduled) — Epstein invited Nowak and Corina Tarnita: "can you and corrina come to the island with Krause and group on nov 11-13". Nowak declined the November date but proposed an alternative: "i wonder if some time in january might work for you? we would love to come to the island then. let us then build a new biology! just the three of us."
3. March 7–9, 2014 — A JetBlue ticket was booked from Boston to St. Thomas on March 7, 2014, returning March 9. Nowak had written: "jeffrey has suggested 7-9 march. could you please look into direct flights boston-st thomas". Epstein approved tickets for "both martin and anya".

New Mexico Ranch (Zorro Ranch)

1. August 9–14, 2013 — A ticket was booked from Boston to Albuquerque, NM on August 9, returning August 14. Groff noted the outbound flight was "the same outbound flight as Ed" (Ed Boyden). Initial reservations were on JetBlue economy but were upgraded to first class on United and American Airlines at additional cost.
2. August 11–14, 2013 (rebooking) — A second itinerary was issued for an August 11 departure on United Airlines first class through Chicago to Albuquerque, returning August 14 via Dallas on American Airlines first class.

Cambridge / Program for Evolutionary Dynamics (PED, One Brattle Square)

Epstein made numerous documented visits to PED, which served as his base of operations during Harvard trips:

1. January 26–27, 2013 — Full weekend schedule: Seth Lloyd, Marvin Minsky, Henry Rosovsky, Martin Nowak on Saturday; George Church, Howard Gardner, David Gergen on Sunday.
2. May 4, 2013 (planned, canceled) — Epstein wanted to use Nowak's office while Nowak was in Korea; canceled because too many people were unavailable.
3. November 29–30, 2014 — Epstein met Nowak at 6:30pm at PED; a dinner at 8pm with Joi Ito, Reid Hoffman, George Church, Nowak, Larry Summers, and Danny Hillis followed.
4. August 6, 2016 — Epstein visited PED arriving around 10am to meet Nowak, Joi Ito, Noam Chomsky, and Stephen Wolfram.
5. June 2017 — Epstein asked to use PED for lunch with Chomsky; Gallagher arranged.
6. March 16, 2017 — Nowak traveled to New York on Amtrak, ticket on Epstein's Black Amex.
7. May 2, 2018 — Epstein at Harvard: Larry Summers 10–11:15am, Danny Hillis 12–1:45pm, Nowak 2–2:30pm, Joi Ito 2:30–4:30pm. Rescheduled to May 6.
8. October 15, 2018 — Full-day visit: Nowak 11:30am, John De La Parra 2pm, Joscha Bach 3:30pm, Larry Summers 5:30pm, Joi Ito dinner 7pm, all at PED.
9. February 21, 2019 — Epstein wrote "im thinking of coming up the 21st you guys free?"; Joscha Bach changed his flight to attend.

Manhattan Townhouse (9 East 71st Street)

• Correspondence indicates Nowak visited Epstein in New York. Emails reference a key to a room ("610") at PED that was kept "in an envelope on my desk at 71st", suggesting Epstein's staff maintained materials at both locations. A March 2017 Amtrak ticket to New York was charged to Epstein's Black Amex.

Paris

• No documented visits to Epstein's Paris apartment by Nowak. However, Nowak proposed a meeting in Paris with David Berlinski and Epstein in June 2019.

Palm Beach

• No direct visits to Epstein's Palm Beach residence are documented for Nowak in the archive, though Epstein messaged Nowak about sitting across from Detective Recarey, the Palm Beach investigator.

7. Criminal Activity#

The archive contains a pattern of correspondence suggesting Nowak was aware of, and comfortable participating in, Epstein's interest in young women — and that he actively introduced women to Epstein in contexts that went beyond academic collaboration.

Correspondence About "Girls"

In one email, Epstein wrote to Nowak: "sorry we didn't get to talk about girls" — a brief, undated message with no additional context, indicating that "girls" was a recognized topic of conversation between the two men. Separately, Nowak wrote to Epstein: "girls are a revelation of infinite beauty / a window into eternity". While phrased in philosophical or poetic terms, the message was sent to a convicted sex offender whose crimes centered on the sexual exploitation of young women and girls.

In May 2013, writing to Epstein from South Korea, Nowak described sitting next to Jessica Alba and having a personal assistant called "So Young," adding: "show me a beautiful woman and i can lift the world out of its foundations". These messages, taken together, suggest a familiarity between the two men regarding the subject of women and girls that extended beyond professional boundaries.

Introducing Young Women to Epstein

Nowak actively introduced young women to Epstein. In one email with the subject line "jade huang," Nowak wrote: "may (who runs PED) has a very cool sister in new york. her name is jade... jade was wondering if you might need someone to work for you in new york (or elsewhere)". He described Jade Huang's credentials in fashion industry terms — she had "worked for high profile fashion designers," "provided legal advice on how to fire models who became fat," and "understands the coolest trends in fashion" — then recommended her for employment with Epstein.

In a separate email, Nowak introduced "an interesting young woman from london: shama rahman" to Epstein, describing her as being "at the interface of neuroscience, music and performing art" and asking: "she will be in new york next week. would you like to meet her? could be amusing."

The Ghislaine Maxwell Apology and "Be Bad" Exchange

As documented in Section 4 (Connections), Nowak wrote to Ghislaine Maxwell: "dear ghislaine, many thanks again for your amazing hospitality. i am so very sorry i caused you so much worry and that i spoilt this day. i am so happy that i did not kill anybody. my perspective of life has changed somehow...". The nature of what Nowak did that "caused worry" and led him to express relief at not having killed anyone remains unexplained in the archive and has been the subject of widespread public speculation. In the same thread, a message addressed to Maxwell reads: "i had such a beautiful time with you that i am now totally sad... at the island i want to go for a moonlight swim", to which Maxwell replied: "Be bad."