Saudi scientist Omar Yaghi wins 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry

Omar Yaghi, Advisor to the President of King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology, one of the three winners of Nobel Prize in Chemistry for 2025

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced today, Oct. 8, that scientists Susumu Kitagawa, Richard Robson, and Saudi researcher Omar Yaghi have been awarded the 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their pioneering contributions to the development of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs).

According to the Nobel Committee, this breakthrough has opened new avenues for chemists to address environmental and industrial challenges. These materials enable the storage and purification of gases and have advanced applications in clean energy and materials development.

The three laureates will share the prize money of 11 million Swedish kronor (approximately $1.2 million) and lifelong respect in their field due to receiving one of the world’s most distinguished scientific honors, awarded by the Swedish Academy since 1901.

Omar Yaghi, who holds both Saudi and American citizenship, was born in 1965 in Amman, Jordan. He earned his Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of Illinois, USA, and is the founding director of the Berkeley Global Science Institute. Yaghi has conducted extensive research and received numerous awards, including the Centenary Prize from the Royal Society of Chemistry (2010), the King Faisal International Prize in Science (2015), and the Albert Einstein World Award of Science (2017). He was granted Saudi citizenship by royal decree in 2021.

Yaghi serves as an advisor to the President of King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) and is a professor of chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley.