Falling Walls Shortlist 2025
Congratulations to all Shortlisted Applicants 2025!
After the first round of the selection process, we are pleased to announce this year’s shortlists. All Shortlisted Applicants are one step closer to becoming the Science Breakthrough of the Year, to be celebrated at the Falling Walls Science Summit from 6-9 November 2025 in Berlin.
Next Steps
The Juries or Advisory Boards will now evaluate all Shortlisted Applicants based on the selection criteria and choose the Finalists. The Finalists will be announced in mid-August. All Science Breakthroughs of the Year will be invited to Berlin to present their breakthrough project on stage in Berlin on 9 November.
We are eager to share their inspiring stories of groundbreaking research and ideas with you.
Our Life Sciences Shortlist
Adam Jozwiak, University of California Riverside, Breaking the Wall of Nature’s Chemical Toolkit
Ali R. Rezai, West Virginia University Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute, Breaking the Wall of Treatment for Alzheimer’s
Carole Mitnick, Harvard Medical School, Breaking the Wall of One-Size-Fits-All TB Treatment
Chi-Huey Wong, The Scripps Research Institute, Breaking the Wall of Vaccine and Antibody Development
Cornelia Holler, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, Breaking the Wall of Reagent Delivery in Biology
Crina Nimigean, Weill Cornell Medical College, Breaking the Wall of Drugging Ion Channels
Dario Riccardo Valenzano, Leibniz-Institute on Aging - Fritz-Lipmann Institute (FLI), Breaking the Wall of APP-Driven Brain Aging
David Klenerman, University of Cambridge, Breaking the Wall of Rapid low-cost DNA Sequencing
David Maresca, Delft University of Technology, Breaking the Wall of Deep Tissue Imaging
Ingo Mellinghoff, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Breaking the Wall of Targeted Brain Tumor Therapy
Jake Brenner, University of Pennsylvania, Breaking the Wall of Therapeutic DNA Delivery
Jan Siemens, Institute of Pharmacology, Breaking the Wall of Heat Tolerance
Jia Fumin, Fudan University, Breaking the Wall of Paralysis by Brain-Spine Integration
Jin Woo Kim, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Breaking the Wall of Retinal Regeneration
Mala Murthy, Princeton University, Breaking the Wall of Mapping the Brain
Melina Schuh, Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences, Breaking the Wall of Invisible Ovulation
Paola Laurino, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, Breaking the Wall of Ocean Microbes’ Survival Secrets
Patrick Ming Kuen Tang, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Breaking the Wall of Cancer Pain and Beyond
Peter Yingxiao Wang, University of Southern California, Breaking the Wall of Genetic Control by Sound
Philippa Borrill, John Innes Centre, Breaking the Wall of Epigenetics in Crop Breeding
Philippe Schucht, University Hospital of Bern, Breaking the Wall of Blind Brain Surgery
Qing-Feng Wu, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Breaking the Wall of Hypothalamus Evolution
Ramon Sun, University of Florida, Breaking the Wall of Metabolism with 3D and AI
Rita Groß-Hardt, University of Bremen, Breaking the Wall of Hybridization in Crops
Ryotaro Hashizume, Mie University, Breaking the Wall of Down Syndrome with CRISPR
Sabine Mueller, University of California, San Francisco, Breaking the Wall of Global Pediatric Brain Tumor Care
Sanjay Ramakrishnan, Institute for Respiratory Health, University of Western Australia, Breaking the Wall of Diagnostic Labels in Lung Attacks
Victoria Sanz Moreno, The Institute of Cancer Research, Breaking the Wall of Therapy-Resistant Cancer
Volker Haucke, Leibniz Forschungsinstitut für Molekulare Pharmakologie (FMP), Breaking the Wall of Stroke Therapy
Weixiong Zhang, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Breaking the Wall of Polygenic Diseases
Our Physical Sciences Shortlist
Akash Kumar, University of Gothenburg, Breaking the Wall of Spintronic Oscillators
Alexie Leauthaud-Harnett, University of California Santa Cruz, Breaking the Wall of Dark Energy
Athina Anastasaki, ETH Zürich, Breaking the Wall of Plastic Circularity
Cathleen Crudden, Queen’s University, Breaking the Wall of Metal Instability
Chetan Nayak, Microsoft, Breaking the Wall of Topological Quantum Matter
Christine Muschik, Institute for Quantum Computing, Breaking the wall of Quantum Computing with Qudits
Claudio Emma, SLAC, Breaking the Wall of Intense Particle Beams
Fan Zhang, The University of Texas at Dallas, Breaking the Wall of Correlated Quantum Matter
Feng Wang, City University of Hong Kong, Breaking the Wall of Luminescence
Ginestra Bianconi, Queen Mary University of London, Breaking the Wall of Quantum Gravity with Entropy
Henry Chapman, DESY, Breaking the wall of Observing Molecules in Action
Ignaas Jimidar, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Breaking the Wall of Building Microscale Structures
James Jee, Yonsei University, Breaking the Wall of Dark Matter
Jens Beckmann, University of Bremen, Breaking the Wall of Stable & Crystalline Nitrene
Jian-Wei Pan, University of Science and Technology of China, Breaking the Wall of Practical Satellite QKD
Jiong Zhao, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Breaking the Wall of Ferroelectics in Two-Dimension
Junsuk Rho, Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), Breaking the Wall of Metalens for Near-Eye Displays
Kai (Kathy) Leng, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Breaking the Wall of Hybrid Perovskite Monolayers
Liming Dai, University of New South Wales, Breaking the Wall of Metal & Carbon Catalysts
Marcello Ferrera, Heriot-Watt University, Breaking the Wall of Ultra-fast Materials
Mario Krenn, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, Breaking the Wall of Human Creativity in Physics
Martin Harmer, Lehigh University, Breaking the Wall of 100 Years of Superalloys
Richard Norte, Delft University of Technology, Breaking the Wall of Miniaturization in Nanotechnology
Sabine Richert, Goethe University Frankfurt, Breaking the Wall of Molecular Spin Qubits
Song Lin, Cornell University, Breaking the Wall of Electrosynthesis
Sujit Ghosh, IISER Pune, Breaking the Wall of Nuclear Waste Remediation
Tanja Mehlstäubler, PTB, Breaking the Wall of Time & Frequency Standards
Thomas Heine, TU Dresden, Breaking the Wall of Framework Materials
William Oliver, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Breaking the Wall of High-fidelity Quantum Gates
Zlatko Papic, University of Leeds, Breaking the wall of False Vacuum Decay
Our Engineering & Technology Shortlist
Aiman Rahmanudin, Linköping University, Breaking the Wall of Flexible Energy Storage
Cesar de la Fuente, University of Pennsylvania, Breaking the Wall of Antibiotic Discovery with AI
Chibueze Amanchukwu, The University of Chicago, Breaking the Wall of Battery Safety
Christian Malapit, Northwestern University, Breaking the Wall of Clean Energy from Waste
Gopala Krishna Anumanchipalli, University of California, Berkeley, Breaking the Wall of Speech Loss with Neural Implants
Hang Zhang, Aalto University, Breaking the Wall of Self-Healing Materials
Hongliang Ren, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Breaking the Wall of Safer Medical Imaging
Jong Min Kim, Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Breaking the Wall of Green Hydrogen Peroxide
Juergen Popp, Friedrich Schiller University Jena/Leibniz Institute of Photonic Technology Jena (Leibniz-IPHT), Breaking the Wall of Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment
Junwang Tang, University College London/Tsinghua University, Breaking the Wall of Clean Energy Chemistry
Lu Fang, Tsinghua University, Breaking the Wall of High-Power AI Needs
Mario Lanza, National University of Singapore, Breaking the Wall of Low-Power AI Chips
Min Yang, Fudan University, Breaking the Wall of AI Self-Replication
Oliver Amin, University of Nottingham, Breaking the Wall of Unseen Magnetic States
Outi Supponen, ETH Zurich, Breaking the Wall of Smarter Drug Delivery
Patrick Hopkins, University of Virginia, Breaking the Wall of Thermal Inefficiency
Rolf Drechsler, University of Bremen, Breaking the Wall of Safer Digital Devices
Shana Kelley, Northwestern University, Breaking the Wall of Hidden Disease Signals
Shirley Meng, University of Chicago, Breaking the Wall of Safer, Stronger Batteries
Shoji Takeuchi, The University of Tokyo, Breaking the Wall of Biohybrid Robotics
Sihong Wang, The University of Chicago, Breaking the Wall of Implant Rejection
Taizo Kobayashi, Ritsumeikan University, Breaking the Wall of IoT Devices with Piezophototronics
Takuzo Aida, The University of Tokyo/RIKEN, Breaking the Wall of Non-Degradable Plastics
Virgil Andrei, University of Cambridge, Breaking the Wall of Solar Fuel and Chemical Synthesis
Weiqiang Chen, New York University, Breaking the Wall of Ethical Drug Testing
Xiaojing Hao, University of New South Wales, Breaking the Wall of Advanced Solar Energy
Xile Hu, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Breaking the Wall of Clean Fuel Materials
Yun Jing, The Pennsylvania State University, Breaking the Wall of Acoustic Precision
Zhengwu Liu, The University of Hong Kong, Breaking the Wall of Brain-Machine Interaction
Zhiqin Chu, The University of Hong Kong, Breaking the Wall of Flexible Diamond Membranes
Our Social Sciences & Humanities Shortlist
Alexandros Kentikelenis, Bocconi University, Breaking the Wall of Inclusive Global Governance
André Bächtiger, University of Stuttgart, Breaking the Wall of Democratic Decline
Andrea Cremaschi, Andrew Harris, Maria De Ioro, IE University, Breaking the Wall of the Two Cultures
Andreas Pondorfer, Technical University of Munich, Breaking the Wall of Misguided Social Norms
Benedetta Brevini, University of Sydney/New York University, Breaking the Wall of AI’s Planetary Impact
Bridget Harris, Monash University, Breaking the Walls of the Digital Cage
Camilla Bellone, University of Geneva, Breaking the Wall of Impaired Social Motivation
Carlos Andres Gallegos-Riofrío, University of Vermont, Breaking the Wall of Planetary Health Injustice
Carola Hein, Delft University of Technology, Breaking the Wall of the Port-City-Territory Divide
Corey Abramson, Rice University, Breaking the Wall of Ethnographically Scaling Human Insight
Dina Pomeranz, University of Zurich, Breaking the Wall of Tax Evasion
Elina Mikelsone, Riga Technical University, Breaking the Wall of Hackathons through Coopetition
Elke U. Weber, Princeton University, Breaking the Wall of Loss of Societal Trust
Emmanuel Letouze, Data-Pop Alliance, Breaking the Wall of Humanitarian Action
Eric A. Hanushek, Stanford University, Breaking the Wall of Cognitive Decline with Age
Eva Illouz, École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales, Breaking the Wall of Political Rationality and Emotions
Han Kyul Kim, University of Southern California, Breaking the Wall of Misinformation in Social Media
Henrik Alexander Schubert, Max-Planck-Institut für demografische Forschung, Breaking the Wall of Fertility Trends in Developed Countries
Jennifer Lackey, Northwestern University, Breaking the Wall of Epistemic Injustice
Jobst Heitzig, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Breaking the Wall of Majoritarianism
Leo Speidel, RIKEN, Breaking the Wall of the Present and the Past
Lilie Chouliaraki, London School of Economics and Political Science, Breaking the Wall of Media and Communication Ethics
Mira Johri, Université de Montréal, Breaking the Wall of Exclusion from Child Vaccination
Myriam Denov, McGill University, Breaking the Wall of War and its Impact on Children
Nicole Gross, National College of Ireland, Breaking the Wall of Data Justice for Healthcare AI
Octavio Aburto, Scripps Institution of Oceanography/UC San Diego, Breaking the Wall of Marine Conservation Limits
Shabana Khan, Indian Research Academy, Breaking the Wall of Infodemic for Risk Communication
Shee Kupi Shee, Lamu County Government, Breaking the Wall of Peace Fragility in Disaster Zones
Tim Kohler, Washington State University/Santa Fe Institute, Breaking the Wall of Prehistory
Ufuk Akcigit, University of Chicago, Breaking the Wall of Prosperity via the Growth Academy
Our Art & Science Shortlist
Agnieszka Kurant, Freelance, Breaking the Wall of Collective Intelligence
Ana Rajcevic, MIT, Breaking the Wall of Redefining the Cell beyond Biology
Arnhildur Pálmadóttir & Arnar Skarphéðinsson, s. ap architects, Breaking the Wall of Lavaforming
Beatie Wolfe, Freelance, Breaking the Wall of Neurobiology through Art
Behnaz Fahiri, MIT Media Lab, Breaking the Wall of Silent Gazes
Carla Alcala Badias & Laura Villanueva, Polytechnic University of Valencia & Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Breaking the Wall of Microbial Prophecy
Carlos Sfeir Vottero, Freelance, Breaking the Wall of the Universal Forces
Chloe Bensahel, MIT, Breaking the Wall of Weaving Hybridity
Christian Losert & Daniel Dalfovo, ATELIER-E, Breaking the Wall of Art dedicated to Neurons & Synapses
Guillaumit, fabrique POLA, Brealing the Wall of Air Pollution with Augmented Reality
Isaiah Wilson, Sarah Baltzinger + Isaiah Wilson, Breaking the Wall of Technology's Impact on Life
Kim Hankyul, Freelance, Breaking the Wall of Healing War Trauma
Liat Grayver & Daniel Berio, University of Konstanz / Goldsmith University of London, Breaking the Wall of Emodied Intelligence
Lu Yang, Lu Yang Studio, Breaking the Wall of Illusions of Digital Identity
Lyndsey Walsh, Humboldt University of Berlin, Breaking the Wall of Empowering Bodily Autonomy
Marc Vilanova, , Freelance, Breaking the Wall of Inaudible Ecologies
Marco Barotti, Studio Marco Barotti, Breaking the Wall of Ecological Healing through Sound
Maria Arnal, Freelance, Breaking the Wall of Vocal and Floral Acoustics
Marte Aas, , Freelance, Breaking the Wall of Blood: Myth, Power, and Immortality
Maya Erin Masuda, Freie Universität Berlin, Breaking the Wall of Species through a Molecular Lenses
Niamh Schmidtke, University of Limerick, Breaking the Wall of Pulling Blood from a Stone
Ore Disu, Museum Of West African Art, Breaking the Wall of Inclusive Digital Heritage
Paribartana Mohanty, Shiv Nadar University, Breaking the Wall of Digital Sky Experience
Philip Samartzis, RMIT University, Breaking the Wall of Passive Observation
Robertina Šebjanič, Freelance artist-researcher, Breaking the Wall of Chemical Weapons on the Ocean Floor
Sonya Isupova, Freelance, Breaking the Wall of Mapping Uncertain Lanscapes
Susanne Winterling, Oslo National Academy of the Arts, Breaking the Wall of the Flux under your Skin
Thijs Biersteker, Woven Foundation, Breaking the Wall of Glacier Data Becoming Music
Vladan Joler, University of Novi Sad/ Academy of Arts, Breaking the Wall of Empires
Xin Liu, Xin Liu Studio LTD, Breaking the Wall of Material Science & Artistic Innovation
Our Shortlisted Engage Applicants
Alberto Pascual, PA, Resilience Action Plan
Eunice Adewusi, RW, Project Ayika
Grace James, NG, GreenQuest
Isabel Gimenez, CL, When the Ice Speaks
Israel Smart, RW, Smartel
Jacopo Orazi, NZ, Dig Deeper Workshops
Jessamyn Fairfield, IE, We Built This City
Jesse Hildebrand, CA, EBTSOYP Broadcasts
Jordi Diaz, ES, Nanoinventum
Juliet Mutheu, KE, Connecting the Dots Podcast
Kakani Katija, US, FathomVerse
Kalina Marcela Fonseca Largo, EC, Open Science in Water
Karen Verstraelen, BE, Amai!
Liza Wohlfart, DE, FRANCIS
Lovro Koncar-Gamulin, AT, City Layers
Maya Tripalitaki, GR, Silver STEAM
Megan Shore, GB, Primary Parliament
Michael Hands, GB, Land for Life
Mohammad Hossein Jahanpanah, IR, RAZIK
Moses Okoth, KE, The Agribot Challenge
Nondas Ferreira da Silva, BR, Seeds of Change
Ojima Ocheni, NG, Astro-Tac
Pooja Manandhar, NP, BioSmart Women Nepal
Provides Ng, HK, Urban Mining 2.0
Samira Allaouat, ES, Geo-Llum
Sidney-Max Etienne, HT, Grown in Haiti
Simone Montano, IT, Map the Giants
Sylvester Weekes, SL, Operation 232
Thomas Soares Mullen, PT, Science on the Walls
Weliton Menário Costa, AU, Science for the People
Our Shortlisted Science Start-ups
1101 Technologies, Nigeria
AATec Medical, Germany
Active Surfaces, United States of America
Agroobot, Indonesia
Akasi Pharma, Denmark
Algaverse, United Kingdom
Alkemio, Argentina
All About Accuracy, Germany
Allegrow Biotech, Hong Kong
Allogenetics, Germany
AmidSense, Germany
Angiolutions, Germany
Anisoptera, South Africa
Antarka, Uruguay
APEXzymes, Brazil
Apricell Biotechnology, Canada
AquaWomb, Netherlands
ATA Mute, Netherlands
Atmosfuture, United Kingdom
Avatar Medtech, United States of America
Avocet Bio, Germany
BATx, Colombia
BEAM CropTech, Argentina
Beat Vascular Health, Sweden
BEHtec, Germany
Belfort, Belgium
BetterLogiq, Poland
Bhumi Sewa Networks, Nepal
BioArmix, Israel
BioHalo, Denmark
Biomia, Denmark
BIOS Medical, Switzerland
BioThrust, Germany
Biowerkz, Germany
Blueprint Biomed, Germany
Bright Materia, Sweden
BTRY, Switzerland
BugSee, Sweden
C2iTech, Hong Kong
CalTa, Japan
CanChip, Germany
Caplyzer, Sweden
CarbonBridge, United States of America
CardiacTek, Rwanda
Ceal Minerals, Israel
Cellfion, Sweden
CeluNova, Mexico
Centeon, France
Cetogenix, New Zealand
Circa Biotech, United Arab Emirates
COLIPI, Germany
CollimateHealth, Germany
CP2 Biotech, Italy
Crystal Quantum Computing, France
DermR Health, Australia
Digity, Germany
Dio Tree, Israel
Eco Nasi, Kenya
EktaH, France
elementarhy, Germany
eleQtron, Germany
Emuno Therapeutics, Germany
Envisage Medtech, India
Eupnoos, United Kingdom
Evocast, France
Evoralis, United Kingdom
exalt, Austria
Exomas, Argentina
ExoMatter, Germany
FabNS, Brazil
Farmevo Technologies, Pakistan
FLASH Tissue Diagnostics, Germany
Flint Paper Battery, Singapore
FluIDect, Germany
FluoRok, United Kingdom
Fungi Life, Argentina
Fusix Biotech, Germany
Greenfluidics, Mexico
GutSee Health, United Kingdom
H2OLL, Israel
Hematainer, Turkey
Hera Biotech, United States of America
Hopebotics, China
Húmica, Mexico
Humify, Germany
ICODOS, Germany
Idun Biologics, Denmark
Ilico Genetics, United States of America
Illutherm, Germany
Inephany, United Kingdom
INLEAP Photonics, Germany
Inzipio, Germany
Ion Mebranes, Turkey
ionysis, Germany
Kazadi Enterprises, United States of America
Kitocoat, Sweden
Kresko RNAtech, Argentina
Latde Diagnostics, United States of America
LayerLogic, Sweden
Lumai, United Kingdom
Lyrata, Canada
Mallia Therapeutics, Germany
Manitty, France
Matnex, United Kingdom
MECHANOCROSS, Japan
mechIC, Germany
MEDU Protection, Mexico
MicroHarvest, Germany
MicroMag Healthcare, Hong Kong
Mission Zero Technologies, United Kingdom
Modern Synthesis, United Kingdom
Namalab, Mexico
Nanogrow Biotech, Uruguay
NANOSentinel Technologies, Canada
Narval, Mexico
Nat4Bio, Argentina
NEEXT Engineering, France
Neggst Foods, Germany
NeutroGen Therapeutics, Germany
New Organs Biotech, Argentina
NextRNA Therapeutics, United States of America
NitroVolt, Denmark
Noah Labs, Germany
Nosh.bio, Germany
NotFossil, Argentina
NurExone Biologic, Israel
o11 biomedical, Germany
Oculab, Indonesia
OriginStory, United States of America
Ouli, Poland
Pan Cancer T, Netherlands
Peace in Paces, India
Peptidus Biotech, Brazil
Phlair, Germany
Pictura Bio, United Kingdom
Plectonic Biotech, Germany
Porelio, Germany
POROUS, Germany
PROSERVATION, Germany
PRUUVE, Germany
PULSETRAIN, Germany
QT Sense, Netherlands
QUBO Technology, Austria
QuEL, Japan
Qumir Nano, Argentina
Radical Dot, Germany
RAYDIAX, Germany
re.solution, Germany
Reactosome, Germany
red cable robots, Germany
Resolve Stroke, France
RNARevive, Canada
Roofline, Germany
SAFIA Technologies, Germany
Scarlet Therapeutics, United Kingdom
Serilink Biotechnology, Hong Kong
Serva Nanotechnology, Hong Kong
Sightwise, Germany
SOLVE Chemistry, United Kingdom
SolvInn Medtech, India
Spark e-Fuels, Germany
StarWarden, Netherlands
SUBmerge Baltic, Latvia
SVAN, Austria
Sylvarum, Argentina
Telekinesis, Germany
TELL, Uruguay
Telos Biotech, United States of America
Tessella Biosciences, Canada
Theseus Development, Ghana
Tintte, United States of America
TURN2X, Germany
Ultrabright Biotech, Germany
Unbound Potential, Switzerland
UniteLabs, Germany
UNOMR, Switzerland
Updairy, Brazil
VacciMed-Oral, Germany
Vanillab Biotecnologia, Brazil
VAULTED, Switzerland
Vema Hydrogen, United States of America
Wireless PnC, Canada
X-nano, Italy
XiA'H, Mexico
XmBauble, France
Xpdeep, France
Zuripacks, Kenya
