Spotlight
Technology Networks features Samuel H. Sternberg, a Columbia University scientist and 2026 Blavatnik National Awards for Young Scientists Finalist, whose research is expanding the potential of CRISPR. His work examines naturally occurring systems that use RNA to guide the insertion of large DNA sequences at precise locations. These systems could offer an alternative to conventional CRISPR approaches that cut DNA and rely on the cell’s repair mechanisms. Sternberg discusses the challenges of adapting these systems for reliable use in more complex cells, highlighting how fundamental research into microbial biology can inform new tools for genome engineering and biotechnology.
The winner of the 2026 Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction will be announced on 4 November at BMA House, during an awards ceremony supported by the Blavatnik Family Foundation. Six titles have been shortlisted from more than 350 eligible books. Bookmaker William Hill has named Patrick Radden Keefe’s London Falling as the favourite, followed by Nicholas Boggs’s Baldwin: A Love Story and Andrea Wulf’s The Traveller. Keefe, who won the prize in 2021 for Empire of Pain, could become the first author to receive the award twice. The announcement will be livestreamed across the prize’s social media channels.
Brown University has announced the next cohort of students to receive the Blavatnik Family Graduate Fellowship in Biology and Medicine, which is made possible through a generous, multi-year donation from the Blavatnik Family Foundation. The eight Blavatnik Family Fellows were selected based on outstanding academic achievement and demonstrated potential for producing original research that advances scientific knowledge and understanding in the basic and clinical life sciences. The fellows are doctoral candidates in the Brown Division of Biology and Medicine’s graduate programs. “It’s a great pleasure to welcome the new Blavatnik Family Fellows, each of whom has shown enormous promise for continued, innovative research in the years ahead,” said Len Blavatnik, Founder of Access Industries and Head the Blavatnik Family Foundation. This is the fourth cohort of the fellowship, which was first awarded in 2023. Each fellow receives one academic year of support, as well as a research fund.
The American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) at Harvard University will name the largest performance space in its new home the Blavatnik Theater, in recognition of a major gift from the Blavatnik Family Foundation. The theater will be part of the David E. and Stacey L. Goel Center for Creativity & Performance. The flexible, 700-seat venue will support artistic innovation and creative collaboration, with adaptable staging and seating that enable artists to connect with audiences in new ways. “I am profoundly grateful to Len and Emily for their generosity in support of Harvard and of A.R.T.’s mission to expand the boundaries of theater,” said Diane Paulus, A.R.T.’s Terrie and Bradley Bloom Artistic Director. The inaugural production, Life on Mars, will feature the music of David Bowie and be directed by Paulus. The gift builds on the Foundation’s longstanding support for Harvard and its commitment to advancing innovation, education, and the arts.
Providing many of the world's best researchers, scientists, and universities with support, and funding to discover breakthroughs that solve humankind's greatest challenges.
The Foundation contributes to renowned institutions that showcase the breadth of arts and culture, including performance, exhibition and education.
The Blavatnik Archive is a nonprofit foundation dedicated to preserving and disseminating materials that contribute to the study of 20th-century Jewish and world history, with a special emphasis on World War I, World War II, and Soviet Russia.
