Young Inventors Honoured by EPO at Harpa

The European Patent Office (EPO) awarded the 2025 Young Inventors Prize at a formal ceremony held yesterday, 18 June, at Harpa in Reykjavík. The event was streamed live from Iceland to viewers worldwide. Ten young inventors and teams, aged 30 and under, were recognised for outstanding innovations supporting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

German television presenter Benedikt Weber hosted the ceremony alongside 13-year-old French student Capucine Auffret. Icelandic sculptor Brynhildur Þorgeirsdóttir specially made the award trophies.

From approximately 450 nominations submitted from around the globe, an independent jury selected ten individuals or teams, referred to as the “Tomorrow Shapers.” Each received a €5,000 prize from the European Patent Office. In addition, three projects were awarded special prizes in categories reflecting the societal impact of their innovations, each receiving an additional €15,000:

• World Builders: Marie Perrin (USA/France) – for recycling rare earth elements from electronic waste.
• Community Healers: Sandra Namboozo and Samuel Muyita (Uganda) – for sachets that extend the shelf life of fruit.
• Nature Guardians: Neeka Mashouf and Leila Mashouf (USA) – for a process that transforms CO₂ into useful materials.

The People’s Choice Award went to the Spanish team of Pilar Granado, Pablo Sosa Domínguez, and Luis Chimeno, who were selected through an online public vote for their development of smart labels that help determine food freshness.

Alongside the awards ceremony, the annual meeting of the Administrative Council of the European Patent Organisation’s 39 member states took place at Harpa. The meeting was attended by directors general and other senior representatives of the national intellectual property offices, as well as their delegations. Nearly 300 guests travelled to Iceland in connection with these events.