German biotech pioneers Özlem Türeci and Ugur Sahin have been honored at the German National Prize 2025, a prestigious award that recognizes individuals and organizations for their significant contributions to a democratic society.
The German Chancellor, Friedrich Merz, presented the award, praising the duo’s pioneering spirit and their decision to take a risk in pursuing the development of mRNA technology for cancer treatment, a path that many others deemed too uncertain. The Chancellor noted that the rapid development of the COVID-19 vaccine was a “medical revolution” that had saved millions of lives.
The German National Prize, established in 1997, is a biennial award that comes with a total of 50,000 euros in prize money. The jury recognized Türeci and Sahin for forming a significant company that made a substantial contribution to the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and continues to lead in the field of mRNA cancer medicine. The Förderpreis, a smaller award, went to the IT education project “IT4Kids”.