Top Nobel and Turing Laureates to Discuss Scientific Breakthroughs in Shanghai

The world's brightest minds will gather at the Lingang Center in Shanghai's Pudong New Area from Friday to Sunday for the 2026 World Laureates Forum, themed "Paradigm Shift: The Next Decade of Scientific Breakthroughs."

Co-chaired by former Minister of Science and Technology Wan Gang and 2013 Nobel Prize-winning American biologist Randy Schekman, the event features a schedule designed to foster high-level academic exchange and industry incubation.

The gathering boasts a heavyweight roster of attendees, including 33 top global science prize winners, among them seven Nobel laureates and three Turing Award winners, as well as 23 Chinese academicians and prominent industry leaders.

The forum seeks to connect foundational research with commercial applications in six key emerging fields: future semiconductors, biomedicine, aerospace information, artificial intelligence (AI), future energy, and quantum science.

The AI parallel forum will bring together Turing Award winners Jack Dongarra and Martin Hellman, along with tech industry leaders such as Cambricon founder Chen Yunji. Together, they will tackle the next decade of AI development, focusing on the balance between technological innovation and ethical governance.

Beyond the conference rooms, the event is designed also to immerse global experts in China's industrial and scientific frontlines, such as a tech tour where visiting scientists head to Zhangjiang High Tech Park to explore the National Facility for Protein Science.

The opening ceremony on October 31 will also serve as the stage for the prestigious 2026 WLA Prize.

In addition to the established awards for computer science or mathematics and life science or medicine, the forum will present the inaugural Young Scientist Award to four rising researchers, underscoring the event's commitment to nurturing the next generation of scientific pioneers.