Schmidt Sciences
@schmidtsciences.bsky.social
Bold science, deep and continuous collaborations.
We have a duty to preserve the intricate and painstaking work of science—to keep the endless frontier open for exploration. Read my latest op-ed, co-written with my husband Eric, here: time.com/article/2026...
Is This the End of the Endless Frontier?
“Our country needs a new consensus on how to support science,” write Eric and Wendy Schmidt.
time.com
Join us for the inaugural science symposium for the Eric & Wendy Schmidt Observatory System and the first gathering of the teams, awardees, and researchers who'll help shape the tools and earliest science. 🗓 November 3–5, 2026 📍 Florence, Italy Interest form: symposium.schmidtobservatorysystem.org
The Eric and Wendy Schmidt Observatory System — Inaugural Science Symposium
November 3–5, 2026 · Florence, Italy. The community's first gathering around The System.
symposium.schmidtobservatorysystem.org
Since 2020, our Virtual Earth Systems Research Institute (VESRI) awardees have helped close key gaps in Earth systems modeling. Building on these results, we're opening a new Climate Modeling Challenge. Read More: buff.ly/aU9lHOk Apply by Sept 11: buff.ly/25uXEF2
New AGU Session 💧 The State of the Freshwater Cycle For everyone studying water — from atmosphere to deep groundwater, all scales & latitudes. Abstracts due Wed, Aug 5 Session 280587 · H131 Abstracts due Wed, Aug 5
As America marks its 250th anniversary, Schmidt Sciences co-founder Wendy Schmidt reflects on how scientific discovery has always been central to the American story.
Wendy Schmidt: Three centuries of science is something to celebrate | Fortune
George Washington Died Not Knowing Dinosaurs Existed. Three Centuries Later, Science Has Never Needed More Defense.
fortune.com
A community working group and Schmidt Sciences have co-authored "The Lazuli Space Observatory: Opportunities for time-domain and multi-messenger astronomy" exploring how Lazuli could revolutionize our ability to rapidly detect and characterize transient cosmic events: arxiv.org/abs/2606.17136
🚨 Funding Opportunity We're launching Phase 2 of the Virtual Institute for the Carbon Cycle (VICC), and seeking international, multidisciplinary teams working to deepen our understanding of the global carbon cycle. Awards up to $10M over 5 years. Applications due August 28: buff.ly/RlQRgYP
Do you use freshwater data in your work? Researchers, policymakers, NGOs, engineers and funders, we want your input! We’re running a global survey on how freshwater data, tools, and products are used in research, policy, and water management: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
Mapping the Global Freshwater Data Ecosystem: User Survey
Schmidt Sciences’ Virtual Institute for Earth's Water (VIEW), is an interdisciplinary, international scientific program focused on advancing our understanding of global freshwater availability and…
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Our first Impact Report is live—A snapshot of how investing in people, ideas and collaboration is accelerating scientific discovery and real-world impact. Explore the stories: www.schmidtsciences.org/2025-report/
It's #WorldWaterDay and Schmidt Sciences is marking it with $33 million in funding to four global research teams building the first comprehensive account of Earth's freshwater, combining 60+ years of data and AI with local knowledge from communities. Read more: buff.ly/GrPFiOw
AI2050 Fellow @AnimaAnandkumar was elected to the @UN Secretary-General’s Scientific Advisory Board, advising UN leadership on emerging science and technology. She joins @Yoshua_Bengio and @DAcemogluMIT—three Schmidt Sciences–supported researchers now serve:
Board Members | Secretary-General’s Scientific Advisory Board
Institute Professor of Economics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Nobel Laureate in Economics (2024); Faculty Co-Director, MIT Stone Center on Inequality and the Future of Work
un.org
Corinne Scown grew up running barefoot through Sacramento's smoky days. Now she's making sure her kids won't have to. Through our VIFF program, she's turning agricultural biomass — the organic byproducts from farming — into cleaner air. #WomenInScience youtu.be/E-k36CbsCAo
AI is transforming how we work—but we don't yet know how, or where its effects will be felt most acutely. Today we announced over $3 million to support 19 field studies across eight countries to find out. Learn more about the research: buff.ly/eVLCxiu
Packed splinter session at #AAS247 for the announcement of The Eric and Wendy Schmidt Observatory System—a modular, rapid-response network of four novel observatories designed to democratize access to the cosmos. Read more about the initiatives here: www.schmidtsciences.org/focus-area-a...
More Astrophysics for More People ✨ Join us for a virtual #AAS247 session and a first look at The Schmidt Observatory System—a new network of ground and space-based initiatives designed to break the traditional limits of discovery. 📆 Jan 7 | 3-5:30pm MT / 5-7:30pm ET Register here: buff.ly/kbbNFuB
The iconic Pachycephalosaurus is heading to the @NMNH! 🦴 Schmidt Sciences co-founders Eric & Wendy Schmidt are proud to support this rare acquisition and the digitization of the National Fossil Collection to unlock data for the global community: buff.ly/1zRRUcO
Smithsonian Acquires Exceptionally Complete Skull of Iconic Dome-Headed Dinosaur
The Rare Pachycephalosaurus Fossil Will Be Temporarily Displayed at the National Museum of Natural History During the Holiday Season
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JUST ANNOUNCED: Schmidt Sciences has awarded $11M to 23 teams globally for our Humanities and AI Virtual Institute (HAVI). These projects bring AI to history, archaeology, literature, and film, unlocking new understandings of human culture. Learn more: buff.ly/tvTUYwY
📣 We're Hiring! At Schmidt Sciences, we envision a world where science is bold, collaborative and provides well-researched solutions for planetary challenges. Check out our open roles: www.schmidtsciences.org/careers/
Major milestone in open AI systems. AI2050 Senior Fellow @PercyLiang is directly challenging centralized LLM development with the launch of the Marin Project. (🧵 1 of 2)
What do we lose when AI makes life-changing decisions for us? AI2050 Early Career Fellow Linda Eggert challenges delegation & explores how human rights must shape our tech future. Read her perspective on what's truly at stake: ai2050.schmidtsciences.org/community-pe...
Community Perspective - Linda Eggert - AI2050
The trolley problem is a well-known philosophical thought experiment: would you pull a lever to redirect a speeding trolley, sacrificing one person to save five?Would you feel differently about the…
ai2050.schmidtsciences.org
Congratulations to AI2050 Senior Fellow Dr. Kelly Chibale for being honored as a Distinguished International Fellow by the @astmh.bsky.social, recognizing his contributions to tropical medicine, chemistry, drug discovery, and global health.
We're excited to welcome 28 new AI2050 Fellows! This 4th cohort of researchers are pursuing projects that include building AI scientists, designing trustworthy models, and improving biological and medical research, among other areas.
Schmidt Sciences awards $18M to researchers working to ensure AI benefits society - Schmidt Sciences
Media Contact: Carlie Wiener; cwiener@schmidtsciences.org NEW YORK—Schmidt Sciences announced today that 28 scholars studying how to fulfill AI’s potential to dramatically benefit…
schmidtsciences.org
This Halloween, step into the world of weird science. Explore AI2050 Fellow Sam Kriegman’s work on xenobots — tiny living machines built from biological cells and the algorithms that invent them . Learn more about Sam’s work as an AI2050 Fellow > buff.ly/lm8iTqn
Astronomers including Schmidt Sciences’ Arpita Roy & Guðmundur Stefánsson have discovered a “super-Earth” orbiting a nearby star 20 light-years away. GJ 251 c lies in the habitable zone — a prime target in the search for life beyond our solar system. Read more: buff.ly/j8eSD3p
Newly discovered ‘super-Earth’ offers prime target in search for alien life | Penn State University
The discovery of a possible “super-Earth” less than 20 light-years from our own planet is offering scientists new hope in the hunt for other worlds that could harbor life, according to an…
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When AI shapes decisions in healthcare, finance, or policy, how do we know it’s working as intended? AI2050 Fellow and @ucberkeleyofficial.bsky.social Assistant Professor Amanda Coston develops methods to make AI more transparent, accountable, and fair. ai2050.schmidtsciences.org/community-pe...
Community Perspective - Amanda Coston - AI2050
Predictive AI models are responsible for consequential decisions. They approve consumer loans, make treatment recommendations in healthcare, and even guide public policy. For Amanda Coston, this…
ai2050.schmidtsciences.org
How can we design AI that truly supports people? AI2050 Fellow and Stanford Professor Fei-Fei Li is pioneering human-centered approaches to AI — from robots that assist in daily life to systems that enhance human dignity and well-being. Read more: ai2050.schmidtsciences.org/community-pe...
Community Perspective - Fei-Fei Li - AI2050
Creating robots that can interact with the world just as humans do is many AI scientists’ dream—but for Fei-Fei Li, how we realize that goal is just as important as achieving it. As a pioneering AI…
ai2050.schmidtsciences.org
Could life exist in the clouds of Venus? The Morning Star mission, led by MIT’s @saraseager.bsky.social and supported by Schmidt Sciences, will send a probe to search for organic molecules in Venus’s atmosphere. Read more about the mission: nautil.us/seeking-sign... #WorldSpaceWeek #WSW2025
Seeking Signs of Life on Venus
Seeking Signs of Life on Venus: The first private mission to the morning star will explore the planet’s clouds.
nautil.us
Turning cosmic data into discovery. LINCC Frameworks, a Schmidt Sciences grantee, powers Rubin Observatory’s nightly 20TB sky survey—recently spotting 2,000+ new asteroids in just 10 hours. This is science at scale. Read the article: nautil.us/creating-a-c... #WorldSpaceWeek #WSW2025
Creating a Cosmic Movie
Creating a Cosmic Movie: How will astronomers make sense of a new era of nearly limitless data from the Rubin Observatory?
nautil.us
Excited to share the latest issue of Nautilus, created in partnership with Schmidt Sciences, which profiles just a handful of the many scientists we support in their pursuit of discovery. www.schmidtsciences.org/wp-content/u...
