VinFuture Prize: sharing the same vision with Nobel

(Dan Tri) - The fact that two VinFuture Prize winners were awarded the 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry once again demonstrates the pioneering vision of the first international science and technology award initiated by Vietnamese people.

This is meaningful in identifying and honoring inventions that have a profound impact on humanity. The 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with the work of using artificial intelligence (AI) to decode the structure of most proteins is of interest to the research community because of the significance of this work. Protein structure is considered a "half-century" problem of the scientific community as well as the whole world , in which the biggest bottleneck is predicting protein structure without experimentation. Among the 3 winners of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, 2 scientists, Dr. Demis Hassabis and Dr. John Jumper, with the above groundbreaking work, were soon honored at the VinFuture Special Prize for Scientists Researching New Fields in 2022.

Dr. Demis Hassabis (UK) and Dr. John Jumper (USA) - co-winners of the VinFuture Special Prize for Scientists researching new fields 2022 have just been awarded the 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

At that time, the VinFuture Prize Council assessed that the pioneering work on the AlphaFold 2 protein decoding artificial intelligence system by the two scientists created a revolution in protein structure modeling, helping to promote breakthrough developments in the fields of biomedicine, medicine and agriculture. Highly appreciating the significance of the work that was soon honored at the VinFuture Prize, Vice President of the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology - Prof. Dr. Chu Hoang Ha said that the VinFuture Prize Council showed a long-term vision and the right direction when looking at works that have a great influence on humanity. "These are works that not only contribute to the development of science but also to the lives of millions of people," said Prof. Dr. Chu Hoang Ha. He also recalled that the two previous winners of the VinFuture Prize, Professor Kariko and Dr. Weissman, also won the 2023 Nobel Prize in Medicine. According to him, VinFuture's choice of the same Nobel Prize is not a coincidence. In addition to its foresight, what Prof. Dr. Chu Hoang Ha emphasized was VinFuture's ability to stay ahead of the trend when choosing to honor projects aimed at areas with great impact such as artificial intelligence, green energy, food security, public health, etc. Sharing this view, Dr. Nghiem Vu Khai, former Deputy Minister of Science and Technology, said that the early honoring of projects such as AlphaFold 2 is the result of VinFuture's correct orientation and mission, humane and global. Although the award was born later, according to Dr. Nghiem Vu Khai, VinFuture has gathered the quintessence of human intelligence, with new thinking and perspectives of the times and breakthrough approaches. Combined with the foundation and tradition, the award is creating a great influence on a global scale.

The VinFuture Prize is considered to have contributed to promoting research in the field of global science and technology, while enhancing Vietnam's position in the world.

From a scientific perspective, Dr. Le Thi Hong Lan, a biotechnology expert, said that the special feature of VinFuture is that the award not only focuses on projects with clear achievements but also evaluates the potential for future development. She emphasized the significance of discovering and honoring breakthrough projects from VinFuture. "The precise selection of the VinFuture Award not only motivates the award recipients but also makes an important contribution to promoting breakthrough research," said Dr. Lan. Dr. Le Thi Hong Lan said that VinFuture is increasingly affirming its position in the global scientific community, not only in recognizing scientific achievements but also as a bridge between researchers and new opportunities, thereby contributing to promoting the sustainable development of science and technology in the future.

Dantri.vn

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/khoa-hoc-cong-nghe/giai-thuong-vinfuture-chung-tam-nhin-voi-nobel-20241010174032307.htm