The Blavatnik Family Foundation, the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, and the New York Academy of Sciences recently announced Laureates of the 2024 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in Israel. All three awards this year will be presented to Weizmann faculty members.
Congratulations to Prof. Schraga Schwartz, Dr. Moran Shalev-Benami, and Prof. Thomas Vidick, who will each receive $100,000 for their groundbreaking research at Weizmann.
Awarded to exceptional researchers aged 42 and younger in the disciplines of Life Sciences, Chemical Sciences, and Physical Sciences & Engineering, the Blavatnik Awards recognize outstanding, innovative scientists at the early stages of their careers for both their extraordinary achievements and their promise for future discoveries.
Prof. Schraga Schwartz is being recognized for developing groundbreaking analytical methods to locate and quantify chemical changes in RNA. His breakthroughs in understanding RNA modifications hold promise for treating genetic diseases and expanding the role of RNA editing beyond vaccine development.
Dr. Moran Shalev-Benami is being recognized for the discovery of key sensing and signaling mechanisms in the brain that can be directly translated to precision medicine. Her work is informing the development of new therapeutics to treat appetite disorders and is exploring how light could be used to modify brain activity in living organisms.
Prof. Thomas Vidick is being recognized for pioneering research exploring how quantum principles can be used to create more powerful computers. His research represents a significant milestone in humanity’s quest to understand the power and limitations of quantum computing and will advance the security of digital communications.
"These exceptional scientists demonstrate the enormous impact that Israeli innovation, creativity, and discovery have on shaping the future and are outstanding examples of the Israeli spirit and resilience,” said Len Blavatnik, Founder of Access Industries and Head of the Blavatnik Family Foundation.
Acknowledging that members of the Weizmann faculty received all three awards this year, Prof. Nicholas B. Dirks, President and CEO of the New York Academy of Sciences, said, “I'm sure that Professor Chaim Weizmann, who not only founded the Weizmann Institute but was the first president of Israel and a scientist himself, would be very proud. We look forward to following the future transformative scientific work of this year’s Laureates.”
Joining young scientists from across Israel who have been honored by the Blavatnik Family Foundation, Prof. Schwartz, Dr. Shalev-Benami, and Prof. Vidick will become part of the international Blavatnik Science Scholars community, whose recipients will have been awarded prizes totaling $17.2 million by the close of 2024. Over the past decade, the Foundation has contributed over $1 billion to more than 250 organizations, providing many of the world’s best researchers, scientists, and future leaders with the support and funding needed to solve humankind’s greatest challenges.
Administered independently by the New York Academy of Sciences, in 2014 the Blavatnik National Awards were created to recognize faculty-rank scientists in the United States. But the Awards were further expanded in 2017 to include the UK and Israel.
President of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities Prof. David Harel celebrated this year’s Laureates and thanked the Blavatnik Family Foundation and the New York Academy of Sciences for contributing to “Israel’s positioning at the forefront of global science, merit scholarship, and economic stability.”
After recognition by the Blavatnik Awards, 30% of past honorees have obtained a patent or filed a patent application, 75% have started a new research direction, and 11% have started a new collaboration with another Blavatnik Awards honoree. To date, honorees have founded 72 companies, many of which are now publicly traded on major global stock exchanges including the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and the Nasdaq Stock Market.
“This is doubly important at the present time,” Prof. Harel said, “with Israel going through one of its worst periods, exacerbated by unprecedented obstacles for Israel’s science.”
The 2024 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in Israel will be conferred at a June ceremony held at the Peres Center for Peace & Innovation in Tel Aviv-Jaffa.
