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Yoshua Bengio and Louis Taillefer, winners of the 2019 Prix d’excellence FRQNT

(Yoshua Bengio - photo by Maryse Boyce | Louis Taillefer - photo by Michel Caron)

Janice Bailey, Director of the Fonds de recherche du Québec – Nature et technologies (FRQNT), is pleased to award the Prix d'excellence FRQNT to professors Yoshua Bengio of Université de Montréal and Louis Taillefer of Université de Sherbrooke. The award was presented during the FRQNT Journée de la recherche that took place in Québec City.

Yoshua Bengio's reputation in the field of artificial intelligence (AI) is well established, both in Québec and internationally. His work in creating the field of deep learning has led to fundamental advances in AI, including breakthroughs in speech recognition and synthesis, computer vision, natural language modelling and in medical settings. Professor Bengio was a co-recipient of the A.M. Turing Award in 2019, often referred to as the "Nobel prize of computing" and was awarded the Government of Québec Prix Marie-Victorin in 2017. He has also been named a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and an Officer of the Order of Canada. As the founder of Mila, (Québec Artificial Intelligence Institute), he provides tangible support for the training of his students.

Recognized globally for his research in the field of materials and superconductivity, Louis Taillefer is among the most cited physicists. His groundbreaking research has been instrumental in understanding high-temperature superconductors, a major challenge in condensed matter physics. The author of some 235 scientific papers, Professor Taillefer holds the Canada Research Chair in Quantum Materials. He encourages women researchers in physics, a field in which they are still underrepresented. His work, leadership and commitment to the next generation of researchers have earned him many distinctions, including the Government of Québec Prix Marie-Victorin, the Simon Memorial Prize, the Kamerlingh Onnes Prize and the Killam Prize.

"It is a true honour to recognize, through the Prix d'excellence FRQNT, the careers of two leading figures in the fields of artificial intelligence and quantum physics," stated Janice Bailey. "The benefits of their research are significant and undeniably contribute to putting Québec science in the spotlight."

About the Prix d'excellence FRQNT
The Prix d'excellence FRQNT, in the amount of $10,000, recognizes the outstanding contributions of university or college researchers in the areas of natural sciences, mathematics and engineering, their international reputation and the benefits of their research for Québec. Winners of previous editions.

About the FRQNT
The mission of the Fonds de recherche du Québec – Nature et technologies is to promote and provide financial support for university and college research, the training of highly qualified personnel and knowledge dissemination in the areas of natural sciences, mathematics and engineering, thereby contributing to scientific discovery, innovation, economic prosperity and the sustainable development of Québec. www.frqnt.gouv.qc.ca

Information
Benoit Sévigny
Director of Communications and Knowledge Mobilization
Fonds de recherche du Québec
514-864-1619