The Fannie and John Hertz Foundation today announced 42 finalists for the 2023 Hertz Fellowships in applied science, mathematics and engineering.
Selected from more than 750 applicants and representing 17 universities, the finalists advance to a culminating round of interviews for one of the most competitive and coveted Ph.D. fellowships in the nation. The 2023 class of Hertz Fellows will be announced in May.
Since 1963, the Hertz Foundation has granted fellowships empowering the nation’s most promising young minds in science and technology. Hertz Fellows receive five years of funding valued at up to $250,000, which offers flexibility from the traditional constraints of graduate training and the independence needed to pursue research that best advances our security and economic vitality.
The Hertz Fellowship experience continues beyond the initial award to include permanent membership in a multigenerational, intellectual community of peers that includes some of the nation’s most noted science and technology leaders, offering a unique engine for professional development and collaboration. Hertz Fellows have access to lifelong programming, such as mentoring, events and networking, which has led them to form research collaborations, commercialize technology and create and invest in early-stage companies together, among other opportunities.
“This is a talented group with tremendous potential,” said Derek Haseltine, director of the Hertz Fellowship Program. “Individually, they have demonstrated technical prowess and creativity in solving complex problems and collectively, they are poised to advance our nation’s scientific enterprise.”
The Hertz Foundation is dedicated to expanding and accelerating the U.S. pipeline of scientific and technical leadership. Through its rigorous selection process, led by Hertz Fellow Philip Welkhoff, director of the malaria program at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Hertz Fellowship selection committee seeks out extraordinary candidates who are best positioned to become leaders in their fields and address the most pressing challenges facing society.
Over the foundation’s 60-year history of awarding fellowships, more than 1200 Hertz Fellows have established a remarkable track record of accomplishments. Their ranks include two Nobel laureates; recipients of 10 Breakthrough Prizes and three MacArthur Foundation “genius awards”; and winners of the Turing Award, the Fields Medal, the National Medal of Technology, and the National Medal of Science. In addition, 50 are members of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine, and 34 are fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Hertz Fellows hold over 3,000 patents, have founded more than 375 companies and have created hundreds of thousands of science and technology jobs.
2023 Hertz Fellowship Finalists
Finalists are listed with their field of study and most recent university affiliation.
Ahmed Abdalla
Electrical Engineering
Stanford University
Undergrad: Stanford University
Shion Andrew
Astrophysics
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Undergrad: Harvey Mudd College
Garyk Brixi
Mathematics
Harvard University
Jeffrey Brown II
Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Undergrad: Stanford University
Suraj Chandran
Chemistry and Mathematics
University of Pennsylvania
Liyam Chitayat
Biomedical Engineering
Tel Aviv University
Azim Dharani
Chemistry
Cambridge University
Undergrad: Duke University
Freja Ekman
Genetics
Stanford University
Undergrad: University of California, Berkeley
Kevin Frans
Computer Science
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Undergrad: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Isabel Gallegos
Computer Science
Stanford University
Undergrad: Stanford University
Swapnil Garg
Mathematics
University of California, Berkeley
Undergrad: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Louis Golowich
Computer Science
University of California, Berkeley
Undergrad: Harvard University
Anjali Gurajapu
Chemistry and Data Science
University of California, Berkeley
Helena Hu
Biological Engineering
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Undergrad: Wellesley College
Philip Kocheril
Chemistry
California Institute of Technology
Undergrad: University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign
Andrew Laeuger
Physics
Northwestern University
Pranav Lalgudi
Molecular Genetics and Physiology
Stanford University
Undergrad: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Jonathan Lu
Physics and Mathematics
Harvard University
Srinivas Mandyam
Physics
Harvard University
Undergrad: University of Pennsylvania
Ajay Manicka
Computer Science
University of Minnesota, Minneapolis St. Paul
Undergrad: University of Minnesota, Minneapolis St. Paul
Nikhil Milind
Genetics
Stanford University
Undergrad: North Carolina State University
Vaibhav Mohanty
Biophysics
Harvard University
Undergrad: Harvard University
Ayush Pandit
Computer Science
Stanford University
Undergrad: Stanford University
Savan Patel
Bioengineering
University of Pennsylvania
Adele Payman
Aerospace Engineering
Georgia Institute of Technology
Sahil Pontula
Physics
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Naomi Sagan
Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
University of California, Berkeley
Undergrad: University of California, Berkeley
Rohith Sajith
Physics
University of California, Berkeley
Aniket Sanghi
Astronomy and Physics
University of Texas at Austin
Anna Soper
Physics
Stanford University
Undergrad: Harvey Mudd College
Benjamin Spector
Computer Science
Stanford University
Undergrad: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Jacob Springer
Computer Science
Carnegie Mellon University
Undergrad: Swarthmore College
Carmen Strassle
Computer Science
Stanford University
Undergrad: Stanford University
Dion Sukhram
Chemistry and Physics
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
James Sunseri
Physics and Astronomy
University of California, Berkeley
Edward Tang
Computer Science
United States Military Academy
Nathan Tang
Chemistry
Northeastern University
Aster Taylor
Astrophysics
University of Chicago
Abby Thurm
Biophysics
Stanford University
Undergrad: University of California, Los Angeles
Madeleine Urbanek
Biomedical Sciences
University of California, San Francisco
Undergrad: Creighton University
Madison Wagner
Chemistry
Scripps Research Institute
Undergrad: California State University, San Marcos
Beatriz Yankelevich
Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Undergrad: Stanford University
About the Fannie and John Hertz Foundation
The Fannie and John Hertz Foundation identifies the nation’s most promising innovators in science and technology and empowers them to pursue solutions to our toughest challenges. Launched in 1963, the Hertz Fellowship is the most exclusive fellowship program in the United States, fueling more than 1,200 leaders, disruptors and creators who apply their remarkable talents where they’re needed most — from the future of health care to the future health of our environment. Hertz Fellows hold 3,000+ patents, have founded 375+ companies, and have received 200+ major national and international awards, including two Nobel Prizes, ten Breakthrough Prizes, the National Medal of Technology, the Fields Medal and the Turing Award. Learn more at HertzFoundation.org.
