The Coller-Doolittle Prize for Interspecies Communication
Launched in May 2024, the Coller-Doolittle Prize for two-way interspecies communication was established by the Jeremy Coller Foundation in partnership with Tel Aviv University. This initiative aims to advance research that deepens our understanding of animal vocalizations. The foundation offers an annual award of $100,000, along with a grand prize of either $10 million in investment funding or $500,000 in cash.
The inaugural award went to a research team led by Laela Sayigh from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution for their work on dolphin whistles. For more than four decades, this group has studied a population of bottlenose dolphins off the coast of Sarasota, Florida, identifying at least 20 distinct types of non-signature whistles. One of these whistles triggered an avoidance response, suggesting it functions as an alarm call, while another sound serves as a shared communication signal.
Award Ceremony and Nominees
The second annual award ceremony is scheduled for June 25, 2026, at 17:00 Kyiv time. Nominees for the 2026 prize include Katherine Crockford, Julie Elie, Nicolas Mathevon, Melissa Berthe, Martin Surbeck, and Simon Townsend. Their research spans various fields, such as vocal communication in chimpanzees, zebra finches, ultrasonic signals in wild mice, and the vocal systems of bonobos. A special lifetime achievement award of $10,000 will be presented to 77-year-old Irene Pepperberg of Harvard University.
The scientific committee judging the competition has expressed hope for achieving communication akin to a Turing test, underscoring the importance of this research area. Jeremy Coller remarked:
“Just as the Rosetta Stone unlocked the secrets of hieroglyphs, I am convinced that the power of AI will help us unlock interspecies communication.” - Jeremy Coller
Laela Sayigh added: “Our work shows that these whistles could potentially function like words, shared among multiple dolphins.”
The Coller-Doolittle Prize represents a significant step forward in interspecies communication, encouraging scientists to explore new methods and approaches for understanding the connections between humans and animals.
This competition could act as a catalyst for further progress in the field of interspecies communication, opening new avenues for studying animal language. The prize and investments offered by the Jeremy Coller Foundation may motivate researchers to intensify their efforts in this important and still largely unexplored area. The findings could profoundly impact our understanding of animal behavior and their interactions with humans.