World Laureates Forum 2026 Opens with Award Ceremony of the WLF Prize and Main Forum----Leading Scientists Explore "Break Through for the Next Decade"

SHANGHAI, Nov. 3, 2026 /PRNewswire/ --  A news report from YICAI:

On the morning of October 31, the opening ceremony of the World Laureates Forum 2026 and the award ceremony of the WLF Prize, together with its main forum, were held at the Shanghai Lingang Center, the permanent venue of the World Laureates Forum.

Under the theme "New Science Paradigm: Break Through for the Next Decade," this year's forum focused on four key areas: new paradigms for collaborative research enabled by artificial intelligence; new value-creation pathways for scientific discovery; new models of international cooperation built on openness and trust; and new approaches to developing the capabilities of young scientists. Nearly 300 scientists from China and abroad, along with more than 4,000 other guests, engaged in in-depth discussions and gathered consensus on major issues shaping the future of science, including research paradigms, value chains, international cooperation, talent development, and science and technology governance.

01 A Constellation of Scientific Excellence: World-Class Scientists Receive Top Honors

At the award ceremony, eleven scientists were honored in three categories: the 2026 WLF Prize in Computer Science or Mathematics, the 2026 WLF Prize in Life Science or Medicine, and the newly established 2026 WLF Prize for Young Scientists.

Established in Shanghai in 2021, the World Laureates Foundation Prize (WLF Prize) is an international science award initiated and administered by the World Laureates Foundation. The prize is exclusively funded by HongShan China, with support from the Shanghai Lingang Science and Technology Innovation Development Foundation.

The WLF Prize has two established categories: Computer Science or Mathematics and Life Science or Medicine. Each category carries a total prize of 10 million yuan, which may be shared by up to four recipients. Newly introduced this year, the WLF Prize for Young Scientists recognizes outstanding early-career researchers worldwide. Six recipients are selected annually, each receiving 1 million yuan.

With this year's selection marking its fifth edition, the WLF Prize has honored a total of 23 scientists. It has become an internationally recognized scientific award with broad influence among the world's leading scientific community.

2000 Turing Award laureate Andrew Chi-Chih YAO announced that Ingrid DAUBECHIES, James B. Duke Distinguished Professor Emerita of Mathematics at Duke University, had received the 2026 WLF Prize in Computer Science or Mathematics.

The citation read: "For major contributions in applied harmonic analysis, wavelet theory, and image compression, and for leadership in the international mathematics community."

Stanford University Professor of Biology and Neurobiology Liqun LUO announced the four recipients of the 2026 WLF Prize in Life Science or Medicine: YUAN Junying, Director and Principal Investigator of the Interdisciplinary Research Center on Biology and Chemistry at the Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS); WANG Xiaodong, Director and Investigator at the National Institute of Biological Sciences (NIBS), Beijing; SHAO Feng, Deputy Director and Investigator at NIBS, Beijing; and Vishva DIXIT of Genentech, Inc. in the United States.

The citation read: "These four scientists elucidated the molecular pathways of distinct forms of programmed cell death, which govern diverse physiological functions and disease pathogenesis. Their pioneering discoveries transformed programmed cell death from a set of observed biological phenomena into precisely defined molecular pathways, established the biochemical basis of apoptosis, and profoundly reshaped research in fields such as cancer biology and neurodegeneration."

1994 Fields Medalist Efim ZELMANOV announced the six recipients of the inaugural WLF Prize for Young Scientists, introduced this year. The six awardees are Raphaële Juliette CLÉMENT, Director of the Department of Electrochemical Materials at the Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research and Associate Professor in the Materials Department at the University of California, Santa Barbara; CHEN Peining, a tenured professor and doctoral advisor at Fudan University; DING Shiqian, an associate professor at Tsinghua University; WU Jiajun, an assistant professor of computer science at Stanford University; XIE Weidi, an associate professor at the School of Artificial Intelligence at Shanghai Jiao Tong University; and ZHUANG Ziquan, an assistant professor in the Department of Mathematics at Johns Hopkins University.

Randy W. SCHEKMAN, 2013 Nobel Prize laureate in Physiology or Medicine and Chair of the WLF Prize Selection Committee in Life Science or Medicine, joined the three award announcers in presenting the awards to the recipients.

Michael LEVITT, 2013 Nobel Prize laureate in Chemistry, delivered the concluding remarks at the award ceremony.

02 Intellectual Exchange: Scientists and Industry Leaders Join Forces to Explore Technological Transformation

Leading scientists from China and abroad, together with prominent figures from industry, delivered a series of keynote speeches, sharing the latest advances and insights from frontier scientific research and industrial practice. Their discussions helped bridge the gap between basic research and industrial innovation and fostered collaboration in addressing scientific challenges faced by humanity.

Omar M. YAGHI, 2025 Nobel Prize laureate in Chemistry and Xinghua Distinguished Chair Professor in the Department of Chemistry and the Department of Chemical Engineering at Tsinghua University, delivered a keynote speech titled "Selection Science for AI and Humanity."

HU Hailan, Member of CAS and Dean of the School of Brain Science and Brain Medicine at Zhejiang University, delivered a keynote speech titled "From 'The Strong Get Stronger' to Ketamine: The Brain Mechanisms of Social Behavior and Emotion."

ZENG Yuqun, Founder and Chairman of Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited (CATL), delivered a keynote speech titled "Innovation-Driven Sustainable Energy: Building a Better Future for Humanity Together."

Laurent LAFFORGUE, 2002 Fields Medalist and Senior Expert at Huawei France, delivered a keynote speech titled "Mathematicians Facing the Success of Large Language Models: Is There a 'Space of Texts'?"

TANG Jie, Professor at Tsinghua University and Founder of Z.ai, delivered a keynote speech titled "From Chatbots to Scaling Up: A New Era of Development in Large Language Models."

This year's forum adopted an overall "1+6+4+1" framework: one combined opening ceremony, award ceremony, and main forum; six parallel forums; four themed events; and one closing ceremony. The six parallel forums focused on six emerging and frontier fields: future semiconductors, biomedicine, aerospace information, artificial intelligence, future energy, and quantum science. They were organized respectively by Shanghai University, Lingang Laboratory, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, East China Normal University, Fudan University, and Tongji University, in collaboration with national academic societies and leading companies. By strategically integrating the academic strengths and research resources of universities into the forum program, the organizers brought together leading scientific and research resources with greater efficiency and fostered the exchange and cross-fertilization of cutting-edge ideas.

In addition, the forum featured four major themed events: the Young Scientists Forum, the SHE Forum, the Future Scientists Forum, and the World Top-Performing Incubator Conference. A series of distinctive side events was also organized, including four science and technology tours, the WLF HUB, WLF Prize Campus Visits, and a temporary exhibition titled "Liu Hui: The Great Mathematician of Ancient China" held in Shanghai. By fully leveraging Shanghai's rich local resources in science and technology innovation, these initiatives created a multifaceted platform for exchange, with parallel forums deepening dialogue, themed events fostering talent development and innovation, and supporting activities translating ideas into action.

03 Looking Ahead: Joining Forces to Explore Scientific Breakthroughs Over the Next Decade

Since its inception in 2018, the World Laureates Forum has remained committed to its guiding vision of "Science and Technology for the Common Destiny of Mankind" and upheld three core missions: advancing fundamental science, promoting international cooperation, and supporting the development of young scientists. It has become an important link connecting the world's leading scientists, a key bridge for high-level dialogue across the global scientific community, and an important platform for nurturing and advancing the next generation of scientific talent.

This year's forum brought together 32 recipients of the world's most prestigious scientific honors, including the Nobel Prize, Turing Award, Wolf Prize, and Fields Medal. They were joined by 23 members of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering, 139 senior scientists, 81 young scientists, and high-level scholars of Chinese descent, among other participants. Together, they formed a well-structured talent cohort.

As the permanent home of the World Laureates Forum, the Lin-gang Special Area is both a key base for advancing the development of Shanghai as an international center for science and technology innovation and a strategic gateway for connecting with the world's leading scientific minds. Leveraging the opportunity presented by this prestigious international scientific gathering, the Lin-gang Special Area will accelerate the development of Lin-gang Science and Innovation City, with a focus on translating world-class scientific resources into new drivers of innovation. It aims to become an important base for attracting talent from China and abroad to advance international innovation collaboration; a key hub for coordinating the development of onshore and offshore businesses; a major springboard for companies seeking to go global and grow their businesses; an important channel for making better use of both domestic and international markets and resources; and a pioneering testing ground for participation in international economic governance.

The 2026 World Laureates Forum was hosted by the China Association for Science and Technology (CAST) and organized by the China Center for International Science and Technology Exchange (CISTE), the Shanghai Association for Science and Technology (SAST), the Shenzhen Pengrui Public Welfare Foundation, the HongShan Charity Foundation, and the World Laureates Foundation.

SOURCE YICAI