Geneva, Switzerland — September 16, 2026 — The Office of Justin Sun today announced the creation of the Justin Sun Prize, a zero-trust, decentralized academic bounty system built around a “problem list.” Prizes are awarded for breakthroughs in fundamental disciplines and machine formal verification, with a top award of up to US$1 million for a single problem. The prize aims to redefine scientific rewards in the AI era and accelerate fundamental research through human-AI collaboration. The first list of Justin Sun Prize winners was also announced, recognizing solutions and formalized proofs for 66 mathematical problems. The top prize of US$1 million went to the OpenAI research team for its solution and formalized proof of the Existence and Smoothness of the Three-Dimensional Navier–Stokes Equations. According to information published by OpenAI, the proof was generated by its internal model, while the Lean formalization and verification were completed by GPT-6 Astra. This problem concerns the Navier–Stokes equations, which describe fluid motion and are commonly abbreviated as the N–S equations. The equations were developed in the 19th century by French physicist Claude-Louis Navier, Irish-born British mathematician George Gabriel Stokes, and others, and have a history of roughly two hundred years. In 2000, the Clay Mathematics Institute listed the Navier–Stokes Existence and Smoothness problem as one of its seven Millennium Prize Problems and offered a US$1 million reward for its solution. The Justin Sun Prize does not use traditional nominations or credential thresholds as barriers to entry, nor does it follow a four-year cycle or a lifetime achievement model. Instead, it ties the prize directly to mathematical problems and machine-verifiable formalized proofs. Anyone can receive the prize as long as they are the first to achieve a qualifying breakthrough. The vision of the Justin Sun Prize is to become the “Nobel Prize of the AI Era,” responding to the profound transformation of scientific research and incentives in the new era in a more decentralized, formalized, and machine-driven way. The repository of mathematical problems and formalized code will be maintained and publicly updated on an ongoing basis. Once a problem is listed, it is locked in: problems can be added but never removed; awarded prize funds do not need to be returned under any circumstances. The current problem list already includes formal verification of the Poincaré Conjecture, the Riemann Hypothesis, Goldbach’s Conjecture, and a large number of unsolved problems proposed during the lifetime of the late mathematician and Wolf Prize laureate Paul Erdős. In addition to the prize, winners will also receive a certificate and a medal. The edge of the medal is inscribed with the Latin phrase “Quod probatur, solvitur,” meaning “Proved, then paid.” The Justin Sun Prize adheres to three core principles: openness, public benefit, and open source. It is open to all eligible contributors, with no restrictions based on nationality, institution, or identity, and makes no distinction between humans and AI; funds are used exclusively for prize awards and open initiatives and are not intended for profit; the problem list, confirmation standards, proofs, and verification materials are all made available to the public through GitHub, while prize disbursement records are recorded on-chain for permanent traceability and immutability. “An award named after a person is the least political thing in the world,” said Sun. “More importantly, it gives me an answer to myself—my wealth is rooted in mathematics. It came from mathematics, and it will return to mathematics.” According to public records, Sun has donated more than US$45 million across technology, environmental protection, disaster relief, and other fields. The Justin Sun Prize will become a central focus of Sun’s philanthropic efforts.continuing to support breakthroughs in fundamental science through an open and verifiable model. The prize will be paid in either USDT on TRON (TRC-20) or USDC on Ethereum (ERC-20), depending on the recipient’s choice. For more information, please visit www.hejustinsun.com/prize. About the Office of Justin Sun The Office of Justin Sun supports Justin Sun’s global business, philanthropic, and public initiatives across technology, blockchain, artificial intelligence, scientific research, investment, art, and space exploration. Justin Sun is the Ambassador and former Permanent Representative of Grenada to the World Trade Organization and the Founder of TRON. TRON is the leading blockchain for the stablecoin revolution, having processed over $13 trillion in volume since its inception. In emerging markets around the world, people rely on USDT on TRON to access the global financial system. A protégé of Alibaba founder Jack Ma, Sun has been recognized internationally for his work in the digital asset industry, including a Forbes cover profile in April 2025 and multiple appearances on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list. In August 2025, he flew aboard Blue Origin’s NS-34 mission, becoming the 712th person in history to travel to space. His broader interests span technology, investment, philanthropy, art, gaming, and space exploration. Office of Justin Sun Contact: info@hejustinsun.com About Justin Sun Prize The Justin Sun Prize is an academic initiative established by Justin Sun to support advances in mathematics, formal verification, and AI-assisted scientific discovery. The prize is decentralized and built on the principle that mathematical work should be judged by the strength, rigor, and verifiability of the proof itself, not the prestige or reputation of those submitting it. Justin Sun established the prize in his own name as a long-term commitment to return wealth created through mathematics and technology back to mathematics itself. Its legacy is intended to be defined by the body of work it recognizes and the laureates whose discoveries stand the test of time. The prize links clearly defined mathematical challenges to machine-verifiable proof. Its guiding principles are openness, public benefit, and open-source access. Visit https://www.hejustinsun.com/prize for more information. Contact: thejustinsunprize@hejustinsun.com
Frequently Asked Questions
FAQs The Justin Sun Prize My Wealth Came from Mathematics and Will Return to Mathematics
1 What is the Justin Sun Prize
Its a philanthropic prize funded by Justin Sun a cryptocurrency billionaire The prize supports mathematics research and education based on his statement that his wealth came from mathematics and will return to mathematics
2 Who is Justin Sun
A Chineseborn entrepreneur and founder of the TRON blockchain platform Hes one of the most wellknown figures in crypto and a former student with a strong interest in mathematics
3 Why is he giving money to mathematics
He has said his success in crypto and business was built on mathematical thinking and he wants to give back to the field that made his fortune possible
4 Is this a real prize or just an announcement
Its a real philanthropic initiative though the exact structure prize amounts and timeline have been announced in stages Check official TRON or Justin Sun channels for the latest confirmed details
5 Who can apply or be nominated
Typically mathematicians researchers and institutions working in relevant fields Specific eligibility rules depend on the prize categorycheck the official guidelines
6 What fields of mathematics does it cover
Broadly pure and applied mathematics including areas tied to cryptography blockchain and computationfields directly connected to Suns career
7 How much money is involved
Reported figures have varied by announcement Treat any specific number as subject to change until officially confirmed
8 Whats the difference between this and the Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prize doesnt include mathematics The Justin Sun Prize is a private philanthropydriven award not a centuriesold institution
9 What is the Fields Medal and is this similar
The Fields Medal is maths most prestigious honor given to mathematicians under 40 every four years The Justin Sun Prize is newer and privately funded so it carries different prestige and rules
10 How does blockchain connect to mathematics
Blockchain relies heavily on cryptography number theory and game theory Without advanced math cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and TRON wouldnt work
11 Whats in it for students
The prize may fund scholarships grants or research opportunities If youre a math student watch for application announcements