The 2023 winners of the Breakthrough Prizes were announced on September 22 and will split a total of more than $15 million.
Key points
- The Breakthrough Prizes, dubbed the “Oscars of Science, was created in 2010 by a group of Silicon Valley entrepreneurs.
- These are the most richly endowed awards in science, disbursing more than the Nobel prizes.
- Three prizes were awarded this year in the life sciences category, one for mathematics and one for physics.
- Each prize carries $3 million — more than the $1 million for a Nobel winner.
- The Breakthrough Prize in mathematics was awarded to Daniel Spielman of Yale University for multiple discoveries in theoretical computer science and mathematics.
- The prize in fundamental physics was shared by Charles Bennett, Gilles Brassard, David Deutsch and Peter Shor for their work in quantum information.
