A panel of international leaders in neuroscience, artificial intelligence and drug discovery has been announced to judge the £7.5 million Longitude Prize on ALS, a five-year global challenge that aims to accelerate the discovery of new treatments for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

The prize, principally funded by the Motor Neurone Disease Association with support from additional global funders, is designed and delivered by Challenge Works. It seeks to incentivise AI-driven approaches that can transform the identification of new therapeutic targets for ALS, the most common form of motor neurone disease (MND).

Judges include some of the best-known names in the field: professor Ammar Al-Chalabi of King’s College London; professor Jeffrey Rothstein of Johns Hopkins University; professor Ernest Fraenkel of MIT; Dr Taslim Saiyed of C-CAMP Bangalore; and Dr Petrina Kamya of Insilico Medicine. They will be joined by Marc Barlow, chair of the prize’s patient advocacy committee, who will act as a patient spokesperson.

Applications opened in June and will remain open until 3 December 2025. Submissions will move through four stages:

• In April 2026, 20 teams will receive £100,000 each to identify potential therapeutic targets.

• In May 2027, 10 teams will secure £200,000 each to build evidence in-silico.

• By September 2028, five teams will receive £500,000 to validate the most promising targets.

• In January 2031, a final £1 million will be awarded to the team with the strongest evidence of therapeutic potential.

Tris Dyson, managing director at Challenge Works, said: “It is an honour to bring such an internationally renowned group of experts together to judge the Longitude Prize on ALS. This panel will play a central role in identifying the most promising approaches to drug target discovery, ensuring that the teams with the highest potential receive the support they need.”

Professor Al-Chalabi added: “The Longitude Prize on ALS is an exciting opportunity for innovators worldwide, providing a platform for bright minds to contribute to a growing ecosystem of AI-driven medical research. It’s a privilege to be part of this judging panel, and I look forward to seeing the entries early next year.”

Marc Barlow, who was diagnosed with MND in 2023, said: “The Longitude Prize on ALS represents a beacon of hope in this quest for new and better treatments, and I am honoured to sit on the panel alongside a group of such esteemed individuals.”