Press release | Eighteen new members of the Academy of Sciences for 2026

This year's elections aimed to strengthen disciplinary expertise within each of the nine sections of the Académie des Sciences, the institution's scientific organizational foundation. Unlike last year, when suffrage by interdisciplinary commissions was favored in order to respond to cross-disciplinary expertise on major scientific and societal issues, this year's elections follow a different logic. 
In fact, they help to consolidate the Académie des Sciences' core competencies in all the major fields of research: human biology and medical sciences; integrative biology; molecular, cellular and genomic biology; chemistry; mathematics; physics; sciences of the universe; mechanical and computer sciences, thus guaranteeing a high level of disciplinary excellence in the service of its expert and advisory missions.

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A president and vice-president at the Académie des sciences
Anne Ephrussi has been elected vice-president of the Académie des sciences for the year 2026. Research Director at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Heidelberg, Germany, she achieved major results in the analysis of transcription before devoting her work to the study of cytoplasmic determinants of development, combining genetic, molecular and cell biology approaches. In 2027, she will succeed Françoise Combes, current President of the Académie des Sciences. Co-president of the French Academy of Sciences' Committee for the Defense of Scientists (Codhos) and a member of the US National Academy of Sciences (NAS), Anne Ephrussi embodies a strong international background, a major asset in strengthening the French Academy of Sciences' voice and influence on the global scientific stage.

Reception of new members

The results of the elections that have just taken place will shortly need to be ratified by official decree from the President of the Republic. A solemn reception ceremony for the new members will then be held under the Coupole of the Institut de France on Tuesday June 2, 2026, from 3:00 pm to 5:30 pm, to the sound of the drums of the Garde républicaine.

List of new members of the Académie des sciences:
Mathematics
- Jean-Benoît Bost, professor at the Université Paris-Saclay, director of research at the CNRS, Laboratoire de mathématiques d'Orsay (LMO - CNRS/Université Paris-Saclay). Jean-Benoît Bost's main research interests are in number theory, more specifically Arakelov geometry, which uses algebraic geometry and analytical methods to study Diophantine equations and transcendence. He has also contributed to other fields, including non-commutative geometry, and has a very broad knowledge of mathematics

- Sylvia Serfaty, professor at Sorbonne Université, Laboratoire Jacques-Louis Lions (LJLL - CNRS/
Sorbonne Université/Université Paris Cité) and professor at the Courant Institute of Mathematical 
Sciences in New York. Sylvia Serfaty's work lies at the interface between analysis, partial differential equations, probability and mathematical and statistical physics. She has been interested in the analysis of the arrangement of vortex vortices in the Ginzburg-Landau equation, as well as their dynamics, and in the statistical mechanics of Coulomb and Riesz gases.

Physics
- Louis Fayard, director of research emeritus at CNRS, Laboratoire de physique des 2 infinis - Irène
Joliot-Curie (IJCLab - CNRS/Université Paris-Saclay). Louis Fayard is a specialist in the symmetries of elementary particles, recognized for his experimental contributions, particularly in the study of the difference between matter and antimatter and in the measurement of the properties of the W bosons and the Higgs boson.

- Odile Stephan, professor at Université Paris-Saclay, Laboratoire de physique des solides (LPS - CNRS/Université Paris-Saclay). Odile Stéphan is a specialist in electron microscopy and spectroscopy. With her team, she pushes back the limits of these techniques to better understand the interactions between light, electrons and matter on the nanometric scale. She explores a variety of fields, including the physics of nanomaterials and nano-optics.

Mechanical and computer sciences
- Claire Gardent, research director at CNRS, Laboratoire lorrain de recherche en informatique et ses applications (Loria - CNRS/Université de Lorraine). Claire Gardent is a specialist in
automatic language processing. Her work covers formal and computational semantics,
conditional text generation, and the interface between language, knowledge and reasoning.

- Stéphane Popinet, CNRS research director, Institut Jean Le Rond d'Alembert (CNRS/
Sorbonne Université). Stéphane Popinet's research concerns the mechanical,
mathematical and numerical modeling of complex fluid dynamics, with applications ranging from
microfluidic systems to environmental and geophysical flows.

Universal sciences
- Philippe Davy, CNRS research director, Geosciences Rennes laboratory (CNRS/University
of Rennes). Philippe Davy's area of expertise concerns the modeling of
complex natural processes with theoretical, numerical and experimental approaches. His work concerns
different areas of earth and water sciences: fracturing, hydrogeology, watershed hydrology
, erosion and sediment transfer, tectonics, magma physics.

- Marta Volonteri, research director at CNRS, Institut d'astrophysique de Paris (IAP - CNRS/
Sorbonne University). Marta Volonteri's research aims to understand the formation and evolution of massive black holes, from the earliest galaxies to the galaxies of the local Universe. Her work has demonstrated the importance of the interconnection of different astrophysical processes in understanding this phenomenon.

Chemistry
- Christophe Coperet, Professor at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (Switzerland). Christophe
Coperet is interested in the chemistry of surfaces and interfaces, in the context of functional materials and heterogeneous catalysis. His laboratory develops molecular and spectroscopic approaches, in particular nuclear magnetic resonance, and couples experimental chemistry and modeling for the discovery and understanding of catalysts.

- Sylviane Muller, Emeritus Research Director at CNRS, Biotechnology and Cell Signaling Laboratory (BSC-CNRS/University of Strasbourg) and member of the Institute for Advanced Studies at 
the University of Strasbourg (Usias). A researcher in immunology and therapeutic chemistry, Sylviane 
Muller is a specialist in autoimmune diseases. She is known for being behind a promising 
peptide treatment currently in advanced clinical trials for lupus.

- Chris Bowler, CNRS Research Director, Institut de biologie de l'École normale supérieure (IBENS) - CNRS/ENS-PSL/Inserm). Chris Bowler is a marine biologist who has profoundly transformed our understanding of the biology and ecology of marine diatoms. His career bridges the gap between molecular biology and marine ecology, making him a key figure in oceanic genomics.

- Matthieu Piel, CNRS Research Director, Cell Biology and Cancer Laboratory (CNRS/Institut Curie). Matthieu Piel's work has highlighted the central role of physical constraints, particularly confinement, in the behavior of immune and cancer cells within tissues. He has thus contributed to the emergence of an integrated vision of cell biology in which mechanics, cell architecture and biological function are closely coupled.

Integrative biology
- Ludovic Orlando, CNRS research director, director of the Toulouse Center for Anthropobiology and
genomics (CNRS/Université de Toulouse-EPE). A molecular and cellular biologist
and molecular archaeologist, Ludovic Orlando explores past societies based on traces
of DNA preserved in archaeological remains and the environment. He is developing an
interdisciplinary approach, articulating quantitative sciences, human and social sciences, and indigenous knowledge.

- François Parcy, CNRS research director, Cellular and Plant Physiology Laboratory (CEA/CNRS/Inrae/Université Grenoble Alpes). François Parcy is a plant development biologist who uses a combination of approaches (molecular genetics, structural biology, bioinformatics, modeling) to understand how flowers form and how they have arisen in evolution.

Human biology and medical sciences
- Philippe Bousso, research director at Inserm, director of the Dynamiques des réponses immunes laboratory (Inserm/Pasteur). Philippe Bousso deciphers the cellular interactions orchestrating immune responses, using dynamic in vivo imaging techniques in particular. In particular, he seeks to better understand the modes of action of cancer immunotherapies in order to improve their efficacy.

- Éric Gilson, CNRS research director, director of the Institut de recherche sur le cancer et le
vieillissement, Nice (Ircan - CNRS/Inserm/Université Côte d'Azur). A molecular biologist specializing in the mechanisms of aging, Éric Gilson studies how chromosome ends ensure genome stability and cellular homeostasis. His results have led to a better understanding of telomere chromatin organization and how its alteration triggers cellular senescence and promotes oncogenesis.

Applications of science
- Frédéric Cappa, professor at Université Côte d'Azur, Géoazur laboratory (CNRS/IRD/Observatoire
de la Côte d'Azur/Université Côte d'Azur). Frédéric Cappa develops research dedicated to
understanding the role of fluids in rock mechanics and the physical processes behind earthquakes.

- Bertrand Thirion, Research Director at Inria, Centre Inria de Saclay. Bertrand
Thirion's research lies at the crossroads of statistics, artificial intelligence and software engineering, with
applications in neuroscience and medical imaging. It focuses on the development of
advanced statistical methodologies, to improve neuroscientific and medical applications of brain imaging.