This Tuesday, President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) presented the 2025 Presidential Science Prize to Academia Sinica researchers Liang Kung-yee (梁賡義) and Yeh Jien-wei (葉均蔚). Lai said the government aims to continue cultivating talent and providing a better research environment, with the hope that Taiwan will produce at least three more Nobel laureates in the fields of physics, chemistry, and medicine within the next 30 years.

Liang’s achievements include his development of generalized estimating equations, a method that is now widely used in global clinical trials and public health research. He also guided the development of rapid testing, drugs, and vaccines during the COVID-19 pandemic. Yeh, who ranks among the world’s top 2% of scientists, is known for spearheading the global research trend in high-entropy alloys. These materials are implemented in specialized fields such as smart machinery, green energy, biomedicine, and more.

The president noted that, according to the International Institute for Management Development in Lausanne, Switzerland, Taiwan ranks among the top five globally in scientific development and ranks second in the world in research and development personnel per thousand people. He set a goal that Taiwan should strive to produce three more Nobel laureates in the next 30 years.

“In an effort to make even greater contributions to science, the government will adopt strategic approaches to scientific fields in conjunction with the private sector. We hope that within 30 years, at least three more Nobel laureates can come from Taiwan in the fields of physics, chemistry, and medicine,” he said.

Lai also mentioned the Taiwan Bridges Initiative, an academic exchange between Taiwan’s top 10 academic institutions that was just launched by National Taiwan University and Academia Sinica. The program will bring 31 Nobel laureates to Taiwan starting this year through mid-2026 to conduct academic exchanges as part of a larger government effort to foster global connections and make Taiwan a hub for scientific knowledge and innovation.