Leroy P. Steele Prize for Seminal Contribution to Research

About this program

The American Mathematical Society awards the Leroy P. Steele Prize for Seminal Contribution to Research to recognize published mathematical work that has had a deep, sustained influence; the 2026 prize was awarded to László Erdős, Benjamin Schlein, and Horng‑Tzer Yau for a series of papers establishing fine spectral properties of random matrices and related ensembles. The prize honors authors whose prior published research has proven to be foundational across subsequent work in mathematics. Eligible candidates are authors of influential published research nominated to the AMS and are evaluated by an AMS prize selection committee, with nominations and selection focused on long‑term impact rather than career stage.