Three IAS Scholars Named as 2025 Breakthrough Prize Foundation Laureates
Three IAS scholars representing the Schools of Mathematics and Natural Sciences have been named among the 2025 Breakthrough Prize Foundation laureates: Dennis Gaitsgory, Member (1996–97, 1998–99) in the School of Mathematics; John Pardon, Visitor (2016–17) in the School; and Gerard 't Hooft, Visitor (1973) in the School of Natural Sciences.
Gaitsgory was awarded the Breakthrough Prize in Mathematics for "his central role in the proof of the geometric Langlands conjecture." The Langlands program, originated by Robert Langlands, Professor Emeritus in the School of Mathematics, in the 1960s, is a series of conjectures proposing precise connections between seemingly disparate mathematical concepts. Gaitsgory's contributions to the geometric Langlands conjecture were praised in the Breakthrough Prize citation: "In 2013, he wrote an outline of the steps required for a proof and, after more than a decade of intensive research, he and his colleagues published the full proof in 2024, comprising over 800 pages spread over 5 papers. This is a monumental advance, expected to have deep implications in other areas of mathematics too, including number theory, algebraic geometry, and mathematical physics."
't Hooft received the Special Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics. Described as "one of the world’s most pre-eminent theoretical physicists," 't Hooft "made crucial contributions to the foundations of what would later become known as the Standard Model of the subatomic particles." In particular, he made important contributions to our understanding of Yang-Mills theories, which were devised in 1953 by Chen Ning Yang, Member (1949–65) and Faculty in the School of Mathematics/Natural Sciences (1955–66), and his colleague Robert L. Mills, Member (1955–56) in the School. 't Hooft's work has "helped establish the Standard Model as a workable theory and provided powerful tools for calculating its predictions."
Pardon was one of three winners of the New Horizons in Mathematics Prize. He was praised for producing "a number of important results in geometry and topology, particularly in the field of symplectic geometry and pseudo-holomorphic curves, which are certain types of smooth surfaces in manifolds." The work of each of the 2025 New Horizons Prize winners, including Pardon, have links to quantum physics, highlighting the interdisciplinary nature of modern mathematics.
Popularly known as "the Oscars of Science," the Breakthrough Prize was established to honor scientists "driving remarkable discoveries" in the life sciences, fundamental physics, and mathematics.
Read more about the 2025 laureates on the Breakthrough Prize website.
