VinFuture 2025: 1,705 nominations worldwide – twelvefold increase in nominating partners over five seasons
- Written by Telegraph Magazine
HANOI, VIETNAM - Media OutReach Newswire - 22 May 2025 - The VinFuture Prize, a global science and technology award, has officially concluded the nomination period for its fifth season with a total of 1,705 nominations submitted from around the world.
Notably, the number of official nominating partners has seen exceptional growth, reaching 14,772 – more than a twelvefold increase from the 1,200 recorded in the inaugural season – underscoring the Prize's reputation as a global hub for scientific and intellectual excellence. 
This season marks a significant leap in both the quantity and quality of nominations, as demonstrated by the wide engagement of the esteemed global scientific community. Among the nominating partners, the majority are from the Americas (31%), followed by Europe (28.6%), Asia (26.8%), Africa (7.1%), and Oceania (6.5%).
Among the 14,772 nominators, nearly half (7,240 experts) are affiliated with leading universities and research institutes worldwide. Institutions represented include Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University (USA), the University of Cambridge, the University of Oxford (UK), the University of Melbourne (Australia), the University of Toronto (Canada), and the National University of Singapore (Singapore), among others. Notably, 1,395 nominators (9.4%) are scientists ranked among the top 2% most highly cited researchers globally, based on the prestigious list compiled by experts at Stanford University.
The nominations for the 2025 award season continue to span a comprehensive range of critical fields essential to human well-being and global sustainable development. These include medicine and healthcare (36.7%); energy, transportation, and construction (17.8%); environment and earth sciences (17.8%); and agriculture and food (11.3%). These core fields mirror global science and technology priorities, attracting considerable attention from the international community.
VinFuture's nominating partners play a vital role in identifying and nominating groundbreaking scientific innovations for well-deserved recognition. These innovations demonstrably benefit humanity on a global scale while also amplifying the VinFuture Prize's stature within the international scientific community.
Driven by the Prize's profound mission and global vision, all nominators participate on a voluntary basis. In 2024, following a nomination by Professor Monica Lam, a leading computer scientist at Stanford University (USA), Mr. Jensen Huang, CEO and co-founder of NVIDIA, was honored as one of the 2024 VinFuture Grand Prize Laureates for his industry-driven contributions to the advancement of deep learning.
Dr. Thai-Ha Le, Managing Director of the VinFuture Foundation, remarked: "Our five-year commitment to the mission of 'Science for Humanity' has establisheds VinFuture as an international beacon of scientific excellence and hope. The exponential growth in nominating partners and the exceptional quality of this year's nominations not only underscore the growing trust of the international scientific community in the Prize, but also highlight the urgent need for science and technology solutions to build a world where humanity thrives in harmony with a sustainable environment."
The 2025 VinFuture pre-screening round will take place from May 26 to August 31. Its goal is to enable the 10-member Pre-Screening Committee to meticulously evaluate the most impactful and award-worthy nominations for advancement to the final round. In pursuit of scientific integrity, objectivity, and transparency, the Committee will assess the nominations through a rigorous evaluation process based on the highest international standards and core criteria. These criteria include the degree of scientific or technological advancement, the impact on people's lives, and the project's scale and sustainability.
Within just five years, the VinFuture Prize has rapidly established its international stature and prestige, as evidenced by the growing list of laureates honored with prestigious global accolades. Notable examples include Dr. Katalin Karikó and Prof. Drew Weissman (laureates of the 2021 VinFuture Grand Prize and 2023 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine); Dr. Demis Hassabis and Dr. John Jumper (laureates of the 2022 VinFuture Special Prize and 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry); Prof. Geoffrey Hinton (laureate of the 2024 VinFuture Grand Prize and 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics); Prof. Yoshua Bengio, Prof. Geoffrey Hinton, Mr. Jensen Huang, Prof. Yann LeCun, and Prof. Fei-Fei Li (laureates of the 2024 VinFuture Grand Prize and 2025 Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering); and Prof. Daniel Joshua Drucker, Prof. Joel Francis Habener, Prof. Jens Juul Holst, and Assoc. Prof. Svetlana Mojsov (laureates of the 2023 VinFuture Special Prize and 2025 Breakthrough Prize).
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VinFuture
The VinFuture Foundation, established on International Human Solidarity Day on December 20th, 2020, is a non-profit organization co-founded by billionaire Mr. Pham Nhat Vuong and his wife, Mrs. Pham Thu Huong. The Foundation's core activity is awarding the annual VinFuture Prize, which recognizes transformative scientific and technological innovations capable of making significant positive changes in the lives of millions of people worldwide.
The VinFuture Prize consists of four prestigious awards presented each year. The most esteemed prize is the VinFuture Grand Prize, valued at US$3 million, making it one of the largest annual prizes globally. Additionally, there are three Special Prizes, each valued at US$500,000, specifically dedicated to honoring Women Innovators, Innovators from Developing Countries, and Innovators with Outstanding Achievements in Emerging Fields.
