The 2025 Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics, often referred to by the media as the "Oscar of Science," has been awarded to the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) collaborations that have contributed to some of the most significant discoveries about the structure and origin of the universe. Among the laureates are physicist and head of “Idealab” at the University of Georgia, Nugzar Mosulishvili, and University of Georgia researcher and physicist Aleksi Ghonghadze, both members of the international ATLAS experiment collaboration.
With a total prize fund of $3 million, the Breakthrough Prize represents one of the highest honors in the scientific world. From the 2025 award, $1 million was granted to the ATLAS experiment, and by the joint decision of the participating scientists, the entire sum was donated to a charitable fund dedicated to supporting students and doctoral researchers conducting scientific projects at CERN.
The prize was awarded for the discovery of the Higgs boson and the precise measurement of its properties, as well as for the discovery of new interacting particles and the study of matter–antimatter asymmetry, which is considered a historic contribution to understanding the structure of the universe.
