Millennium Prize Problems Lecture Series
Date: 17 September 2025 - 15 April 2026
Location: Harvard Science Center, Harvard University
Event type: Public Engagement
Organisers: Martin Bridson (CMI, Oxford), Dan Freed (Harvard, CMSA), Mike Hopkins (Harvard)
In 2000, the Clay Mathematics Institute identified seven significant open problems, and offered $1 million for each. Of these, only the Poincaré Conjecture has been resolved. The list was assembled to:
- Highlight major unsolved mathematical questions at the turn of the millennium
- Emphasize the importance of tackling genuinely hard problems
- Acknowledge significant achievements in mathematics
A final stated goal of these problems is to “elevate in the consciousness of the general public the fact that, in mathematics, the frontier is still open and abounds in important unsolved problems.” It is in this spirit that these seven public lectures are offered.
September 17, 2025: Michael Freedman (Harvard CMSA) Poincaré Conjecture
October 15, 2025: Sourav Chatterjee (Stanford) Yang–Mills Existence and Mass Gap
November 12, 2025: Pierre Deligne (IAS) Hodge Conjecture
December 3, 2025: Madhu Sudan (Harvard) P vs NP Problem
February 4, 2026: Barry Mazur (Harvard) Birch and Swinnerton–Dyer Conjecture
March 11, 2026: Javier Gómez-Serrano (Brown) Navier-Stokes Existence or Breakdown
April 15, 2026: Peter Sarnak (IAS) Riemann Hypothesis