The 2025 Nobel Prizes concluded this week, celebrating transformative achievements across medicine, physics, chemistry, literature, peace, and economics — underscoring the power of human ingenuity, resilience, and innovation.

From unraveling the mysteries of the immune system to pioneering research on innovation-driven economic growth, this year’s laureates exemplify the diverse ways science, literature, and social courage shape the modern world.

All prizes except the Nobel Peace Prize, announced Friday in Oslo, were revealed in Stockholm. The award ceremonies are scheduled for December 10, the anniversary of Alfred Nobel’s death.

Medicine

The Nobel Prize in Medicine, announced on October 6, went to Mary E. Brunkow, Fred Ramsdell, and Shimon Sakaguchi for their groundbreaking research on how the immune system regulates itself through regulatory T cells. Their discoveries are critical for understanding autoimmune diseases such as Type 1 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, and lupus, and are now being applied to improve organ transplant outcomes, enhance cancer immunotherapy, and develop new treatments for a range of immune-related conditions. 

Brunkow, 64, is senior program manager at the Institute for Systems Biology in Seattle; Ramsdell, 64, is a scientific adviser at Sonoma Biotherapeutics in San Francisco; and Sakaguchi, 74, is a distinguished professor at the Immunology Frontier Research Center, Osaka University, Japan.

Physics

On October 7, John Clarke, Michel H. Devoret, and John M. Martinis were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for their pioneering work on quantum tunneling, a phenomenon that enables ultrasensitive measurements in technologies such as MRI machines and lays the foundation for faster computers and advanced digital devices.

Their research bridged the counterintuitive behavior of subatomic particles — where light can act as both wave and particle and atoms can tunnel through seemingly impenetrable barriers — with practical applications in modern electronics.

Clarke, 83, conducted his work at the University of California, Berkeley; Martinis, 67, at UC Santa Barbara; and Devoret, 72, at Yale and UC Santa Barbara.

Chemistry

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry, announced October 8, went to Susumu Kitagawa, Richard Robson, and Omar M. Yaghi for developing new molecular frameworks capable of trapping large quantities of gas.

Experts say their work could underpin technologies to capture greenhouse gases, harvest moisture in arid environments, and tackle some of humanity’s greatest environmental challenges.

Kitagawa, 74, is at Kyoto University, Japan; Robson, 88, at the University of Melbourne, Australia; and Yaghi, 60, at the University of California, Berkeley.

Literature

Hungarian novelist László Krasznahorkai won the Nobel Prize in Literature on October 9. The judges praised his surreal and anarchic novels, which explore bleak, apocalyptic worlds infused with mordant humor, demonstrating the enduring power of art amid chaos.

Krasznahorkai, 71, has authored more than 20 books, including The Melancholy of Resistance — a story involving a traveling circus and a stuffed whale — and Baron Wenckheim’s Homecoming, the saga of a gambling-addicted aristocrat.

He has also been a vocal critic of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, particularly regarding Hungary’s inadequate support for Ukraine during Russia’s full-scale invasion.

Peace

On October 10, Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado won the Nobel Peace Prize, recognized as a “key, unifying figure in a political opposition that was once deeply divided.”

Machado, who turned 58 this week, was disqualified from running against President Nicolás Maduro in last year’s presidential election, which was marred by repression, arrests, and human rights violations.

Since January, Machado has remained in hiding, and her attendance at the December award ceremony in Stockholm remains uncertain. She is the 20th woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, among 112 laureates honored in this category since its inception.

Economics

Capping the 2025 Nobel announcements, Joel Mokyr, Philippe Aghion, and Peter Howitt were awarded the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences on October 13 for their groundbreaking research on innovation and its impact on long-term economic growth.

Their work illuminates the concept of creative destruction, whereby new technologies and production methods replace old ones, transforming industries and raising living standards globally.

Mokyr, 79, an economic historian at Northwestern University, examined historical trends to identify the drivers of sustained technological progress.

Aghion, 69, of Collège de France and the London School of Economics, and Howitt, 79, of Brown University, developed a mathematical model to explain how creative destruction sustains economic growth.

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences highlighted that for most of human history, economic stagnation was the norm, and the laureates’ work underscores why continuous innovation and policy attention are essential to maintain prosperity.

This year’s Nobel season demonstrates the extraordinary diversity of human achievement — from medical breakthroughs and technological innovation to literary excellence and courageous leadership — reflecting the enduring legacy of Alfred Nobel’s vision in rewarding discoveries and actions that benefit humanity.