US President Donald Trump presented the National Medal of Science and the National Medal of Technology and Innovation to six people on 8 October 2026. The ceremony took place during the “Science: A New Golden Age Summit” in Washington, D.C. Four recipients received the science medal and two received the technology and innovation medal.
US National Science and Technology Medals
The National Medal of Science was established by Congress in 1959 and recognises contributions to the physical, biological, mathematical, engineering and social sciences. The National Science Foundation administers the science medal programme. The National Medal of Technology was established in 1980 and was renamed the National Medal of Technology and Innovation in 2007. The United States Patent and Trademark Office administers the technology medal programme.
Recipients and recognised contributions
Elon Musk, Sergey Brin, Jensen Huang and Lisa Su received the National Medal of Science. Musk was recognised for engineering achievements in space exploration and intelligent systems; Brin for foundational algorithms in information retrieval; Huang for advancing the graphics processing unit (GPU) for general-purpose computing; and Su for leadership in semiconductor engineering and high-performance computing.
Michael Dell and Satya Nadella received the National Medal of Technology and Innovation. Dell was recognised for advancing personal and enterprise computing, while Nadella was recognised for leadership in cloud computing and the development of hyperscale infrastructure. Musk was born in South Africa, Brin in Russia, Huang and Su in Taiwan, and Nadella in India. Dell was born in the United States, making five of the six recipients foreign-born.
Scientific and technological contributions
A graphics processing unit is a processor designed for parallel computation and is used in fields including scientific computing. Information retrieval refers to finding relevant information from collections of data. Semiconductor engineering includes the design and development of electronic devices and integrated circuits. Cloud computing provides computing resources and services over networks, while hyperscale infrastructure supports large-scale computing operations.
Important Facts for Exams
- The National Medal of Science was established by Congress in 1959.
- The National Medal of Technology and Innovation was renamed from the National Medal of Technology in 2007.
- The National Science Foundation administers the National Medal of Science programme.
- The United States Patent and Trademark Office administers the National Medal of Technology and Innovation programme.
The six recipients were recognised on 8 October 2026 at a summit in Washington, D.C. Four received the National Medal of Science, and two received the National Medal of Technology and Innovation.
