Stars lend glamour to ‘Oscars of science' Breakthrough Prizes
Gwyneth Paltrow, Alicia Keys and Lizzo were among the stars giving science some pizzazz at this year's Breakthrough Prizes in Los Angeles on Saturday.
Nicknamed the 'Oscars of Science', the six awards of $3 million (£2.3 million) each are given for advances in life sciences, physics and mathematics.
Some of the biggest names in tech, film and music walked the red carpet in Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, California, lending their glamour to the event.
Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos all flashed a smile, despite a torrid week in which their companies lost billions in the market turmoil caused by Donald Trump's tariff announcements.
Media mogul Rupert Murdoch, 94, was pictured with his wife Elena Zhukova, 67, whom he married last summer. His third wife, Wendi Murdoch, 56, was also in attendance.
Other attendees included Zoe Saldana, the Oscar-winning actress, Paris Hilton, the socialite, Gal Gadot, the star of Disney's ill-fated Snow White remake, and Lily Collins, the Emily in Paris actress.
Musicians Lizzo, Katy Perry, Alicia Keys and Christina Aguilera also came.
The scientists who developed Ozempic, the pioneering weight-loss drug, were awarded a Breakthrough Prize.
Another went to David Liu, an American molecular biologist, for developing two precise gene editing tools to help people with severe genetic diseases.
A further life science prize was given for groundbreaking research on multiple sclerosis.
More than 13,500 researchers from Cern, Europe's particle physics laboratory, took home a joint award for testing the modern theory of particle physics.
The Breakthrough Prizes were founded in 2012 and are sponsored by Yuri Milner, a Russian–Israeli billionaire, and tech entrepreneurs including Mark Zuckerberg, the chief executive of Meta.
This year's prizes were given at a fraught moment for US science, as Donald Trump's government stripped funding for institutions like the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
'The NIH is a treasure, not just for this country but for the world,' said Mr Liu, after winning his award.
'Trying to dismantle the heart of what supports science in this country is like burning your seed corn.'
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