Nobel Prize in chemistry awarded to David Baker, Demis Hassabis, John Jumper for work on proteins | Technology News
Nobel Prize in Chemistry for 2024 was awarded to David Baker “for computational protein design” and jointly to Demis Hassabis and John M. Jumper “for protein structure prediction.”
This year’s Nobel Prize laureates in chemistry have revealed proteins’ secrets through computing and artificial intelligence.
While Hassabis and Jumper successfully utilised artificial intelligence to predict the structure of almost all known proteins, Baker has learned how to master life’s building blocks and create entirely new proteins.
The ability to create proteins that are loaded with new functions can lead to new nanomaterials, targeted pharmaceuticals, more rapid development of vaccines, minimal sensors and a greener chemical industry – to name just a few applications that are for the greatest benefit of humankind.
Baker works at the University of Washington in Seattle, while Hassabis and Jumper both work at Google Deepmind in London.
Last year, the chemistry award went to Moungi Bawendi, Louis Brus and Alexei Ekimov for their discovery and development of quantum dots, which are nanoparticles so tiny that their size determines their properties.
The prize carries a cash award of 11 million Swedish kronor (USD 1 million) from a bequest left by the award’s creator, Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel.
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