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Shuji_Nakamura(AASF_Pioneer_Medal)
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Tuesday, July 29, 2025, 4:30 pm

Professor Shuji Nakamura receives the 2025 Asian American Pioneer Medal

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Honoring Visionaries and Shaping the Future: Featured on NBC Bay Area, AASF Concludes 2025 Asian American Pioneer Medal Symposium and Ceremony on a High Note

Celebrating our shared American history, the pursuit of scientific and research excellence, our Asian American pioneers, and the transformative power of innovation, the Asian American Scholar Forum (AASF), in partnership with the Stanford University Asian American Research Center, hosted the second Asian American Pioneer Medal Symposium and Ceremony from July 25–27, 2025, at Stanford University.

With more than 2,000 registrants, this year’s event expanded into a three-day experience featuring over 15 panels and sessions, as well as more than 50 of the nation’s top minds in energy, artificial intelligence, life sciences, and leadership. Scholars, students, and leaders from across the country and around the world gathered to recognize the enduring contributions of Asian American pioneers and to elevate public dialogue around science, technology, and academic leadership.

2025 Pioneer Medal Award Recipients

AASF proudly presented the 2025 Asian American Pioneer Medal to the following pioneers, whose work continues to shape scientific progress that impacts all Americans and humanity:

  • Dr. David Ho, Professor of Microbiology & Immunology, Clyde ’56 and Helen Wu Professor of Medicine; Director, Wu Family China Center; and Emeritus Founding Director, Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center at Columbia University, honored for pioneering HIV/AIDS research and treatment

  • Dr. Mani Menon, Chief of Strategy and Innovation in the Department of Urology for the Mount Sinai Health System, honored for groundbreaking advances in robotic surgery

  • Dr. Shuji Nakamura, CREE Professor of Solid State Lighting and Displays, Materials at the University of California – Santa Barbara, honored for inventing the blue LED

  • Chih-Tang (Tom) Sah, Professor Emeritus of Physics and Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, honored for revolutionary work in semiconductor electronics

  • Wong Tsoo, honored posthumously for pioneering m

External link
AASF.org