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Schmidt Futures Announces Recipients of Schmidt Science Polymaths Award

June 29, 2022

Ten Recently Tenured Professors Named to Polymath Program, Awarded up to $2.5 Million each for Interdisciplinary Research Support

NEW YORK, NY,  June 29, 2022Today, Schmidt Futures announced ten new recipients of the Schmidt Science Polymaths award. The Polymath program makes long-term bets on recently-tenured professors with remarkable track records, promising futures, and a desire to explore risky new research ideas across disciplines. The award provides $500,000 a year, paid through each awardee’s institution, for up to five years to help support part of a research group. The awardees are the second group to receive the Polymath award, joining just two other exceptionally talented interdisciplinary researchers named in 2021. 

The awards build upon Schmidt Futures’ commitment to identifying and supporting extraordinary talent, and growing networks empowered to solve hard problems in science and society. Each Polymath will receive support at the moment in their careers when researchers have the most freedom to explore new ideas, use emerging technologies to test risky theories, and pursue novel scientific research that traverses fields and disciplines; which is otherwise unlikely to receive funding or support.

“The interdisciplinary work that could herald the next great scientific breakthroughs are chronically under-funded,” said Eric Braverman, CEO of Schmidt Futures. “We are betting on the talent of the Schmidt Science Polymaths to explore new ideas across disciplines and accelerate discoveries to address the challenges facing our planet and society.”

Hopeful Polymaths from over 25 universities submitted applications outlining research ideas in STEM fields that represent a substantive shift from their current research portfolio and are unlikely to receive funding elsewhere for consideration to the Schmidt Science Polymaths program. Existing Polymaths’ ideas range from the artificial creation of complex soft matter like human tissue, to the development of synthetic biology platforms for engineering multicellular systems, to the discovery of exotic forms of quantum matter. The impact of this type of interdisciplinary research could result in innovations previously thought impossible like a 3D printer for human organs, climate change-resistant crops, or the unknown applications of quantum matter.

“Single-minded specialization coupled with rigid research and funding structures often hinder the ambition to unleash fresh perspectives in scientific inquiry,” said Stuart Feldman, Chief Scientist of Schmidt Futures. “From climate change to public health, the Schmidt Science Polymaths utilize the depth of their knowledge across a breadth of fields to find new ways to solve some of our hardest problems for public benefit.”

Representing a diverse array of intellect across STEM fields, this group of Polymaths are an extraordinary example of the type of exceptional talent that Schmidt Futures scours the earth looking to find and support. Schmidt Futures proudly introduces the 2022 Schmidt Science Polymaths:

Samir Bhatt, Imperial College London

Shelley Claridge, Purdue University

Ido Kaminer, Technion – Israel Institute of Technology

Ahmad ‘Mo’ Khalil, Boston University

Lulu Qian, California Institute of Technology

Andrew Saxe, University College London

Suchitra Sebastian, University of Cambridge

Sudip Shekhar, University of British Columbia

Randy Goldsmith, University of Wisconsin- Madison

Mary Caswell Stoddard, Princeton University

 

About Schmidt Futures:

Schmidt Futures bets early on exceptional people making the world better. Founded by Eric and Wendy Schmidt, Schmidt Futures is a philanthropic initiative that brings talented people together in networks to prove out their ideas and solve hard problems in science and society. To learn more about our method and the diverse types of capital and tools that we deploy, visit https://www.schmidtfutures.org