Pioneering and breakthrough research on artificial neural networks and deep learning algorithms has driven a multitude of applications in healthcare, transportation, robotics, and more, winning the main award at VinFuture 2024.
On the evening of December 6th, the global science and technology award ceremony – VinFuture 2024 took place at Ho Guom Theater. The event was attended by Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son, along with leaders from various ministries and hundreds of renowned CEOs and scientists from around the world. Among them were many researchers who are recipients of prestigious international awards such as the Nobel Prize, Millennium Technology Prize, Turing Award, and previous VinFuture seasons.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Mr. Pham Nhat Vuong, Chairman of Vingroup at the event on December 6th. Photo: Ngoc Thanh
In its fourth year, the award set a new record with 1,500 nominations from over 9,000 partners across more than 80 countries and territories. This figure is 2.5 times higher than the inaugural season in 2021, which had 599 nominations.
After the flag-raising ceremony, the event began with speeches from Professor Richard Henry Friend, Chairman of the VinFuture Prize Council, and Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh.
According to Richard Henry Friend, the scientific and technological works of the nominated partners have a profound impact on global development. They represent the culmination of humanity’s relentless efforts. “The works of the award winners are clear evidence of the growing stature and influence of the award over four seasons,” he stated. The Prize Council also affirmed the correct vision as two groups of scientists previously honored by VinFuture continued to receive international recognition at the Nobel Prize.
Following Richard Henry Friend’s remarks, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh expressed gratitude to scientists and their research contributions. He shared that with the message of “Resilient Breakthroughs”, VinFuture 2024 is a significant event that continues to honor groundbreaking research and inventions that have a wide-reaching impact, helping humanity overcome difficulties and reach new heights.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (second from left) awards 3 out of 5 main prize winners of VinFuture 2024: Professor Yoshua Bengio, Jensen Huang, and Professor Yann LeCun. Photo: Ngoc Thanh
The Prime Minister praised and thanked Mr. Pham Nhat Vuong and his wife for establishing and developing the VinFuture Foundation, affirming its international stature. He believes the award will continue to inspire scientists and entrepreneurs, especially the younger generation in Vietnam. The Prime Minister affirmed that Vietnam will create the best conditions for scientists and research in science and technology to shine and develop robustly.
“Vietnam is committed to continuously improving the scientific and technological environment, fostering innovation, always being a reliable partner, and striving to contribute to playing a role as one of the ‘fire carriers’ in developing the global science and technology ecosystem, startups, and innovation,” the Prime Minister expressed.
The Prime Minister’s affirmation was met with applause from many scientists and guests present in the auditorium.
Immediately after the Prime Minister’s speech, the organizers dedicated the remaining time to honor the scientists and their research works.
VinFuture 2024 awarded a total of 4 categories of prizes. The main award is valued at 3 million USD (over 76 billion VND). Three special awards, each worth 500,000 USD (nearly 13 billion VND), are designated for a female scientist, a scientist from developing countries, and a scientist researching new fields.
Among them, “Breakthrough Deep Learning Algorithms”, featuring pioneering and groundbreaking research on artificial neural networks and deep learning algorithms that promote a multitude of applications in healthcare, transportation, robotics, etc., won the main VinFuture 2024 award. Applause erupted as Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh presented the award to the five scientists: Yoshua Bengio, Geoffrey E. Hinton, Jen-Hsun Huang, Yann LeCun, and Fei-Fei Li.
Their research has ushered in a breakthrough era for technological innovations, allowing machines to “learn” from vast amounts of data and achieve remarkable accuracy in tasks such as image recognition, natural language processing, and decision-making.
Professor Nguyen Thuc Quyen (right) presents the award to Dr. Firdausi Qadri. (Photo: Ngoc Thanh).
In the other three categories, American professor Kristi S. Anseth received the special award for Female Scientist. Dr. Firdausi Qadri from Bangladesh, with her work on “Innovative Improvements in Oral Cholera Vaccines for Developing Countries“, won the award for scientists from developing countries.
Professor Kristi S. Anseth receives the award from the Chairman of the Prize Council, Professor Richard Henry Friend. (Photo: Ngoc Thanh).
The VinFuture 2024 Special Award for scientists researching new fields was awarded to Professor Zelig Eshhar, Professor Carl H. June, and Professor Michel Sadelain for developing CAR T-cell therapy for cancer and other diseases.
Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son (far right) presents the award to Professor Carl H. June and Professor Michel Sadelain, along with Mrs. Sharon Eshhar (daughter of Professor Zelig Eshhar) (from left to right) on December 6th. (Photo: Ngoc Thanh).
In its fourth year, the VinFuture 2024 award ceremony has affirmed its position as one of the most anticipated annual events in the global science and technology community. The two-tiered auditorium with over 1,000 seats at Ho Guom Theater was nearly filled to capacity.
In addition to honoring scientists and their contributions, the program featured explosive moments with performances by the globally renowned rock band – Imagine Dragons. They brought two of their famous songs, “Believer” and “Whatever It Takes”. Interspersed were artistic performances that combined modern elements with traditional Vietnamese culture, such as “Drum Com”, and “Heritech Dance” – a blend of technology and heritage (Heritage + Technology)…
After the award ceremony, the MC had a brief interaction with Professor Martin Green, the main award winner in 2023, and Professor Pamela Ronald, two members of the award council.
The program concluded at 10 PM with the song “Walking the Wire”, performed by the international band Imagine Dragons along with the Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra. The performance was a fusion of orchestral characteristics and the vibrant, edgy energy of rock, showcasing the limitless creativity of humanity.
