The Last Word with Wendy Schmidt

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Discovery lights up the world

WWith the emerging tools of AI, machine learning, space telescopes and more, it’s clear that we are just beginning to understand the universe we live in – from the farthest reaches we can find in space to the smallest quivering particle that we now know can be in two places at the same time.

In my lifetime alone, scientists have made enormous advances in how we treat and manage disease, as well as how we see and understand the natural world and the universe. Every time we look more closely at the world around us, we make discoveries. Schmidt Sciences’ programs explore the depths of space at higher resolution than ever before, find biomaterials to replace fossil-based products, and seek to understand, apply, and ensure the safety of the technologies that are transforming our world.

From the sea to space

The ocean is the last frontier of our planet and the possibilities for discovery at sea are as numerous as in space. These two domains, Earth and space, understood together, constitute the human environment that we must increasingly understand and protect. It is our survival system and throughout our lives we seek knowledge and advancement wherever it may be found.

Our climate team explores how human activity affects our planet and how the planet strives to maintain balance in all its systems, including within the oceans, by cycling carbon and other essential elements. And our astrophysics and space focus area advances ground- and space-based technologies to seek answers about our universe. As distant as these two fields, the ocean and space, may seem, our teams share a similar approach and spirit. They ask the biggest questions, drive interdisciplinary collaboration, apply new technologies, and accelerate discovery. They also make their scientific research as widely accessible as possible and integrate local and community science.

Collaboration and curiosity

There is a rich history of collaboration and technological exchange between astronomers and oceanographers, even between our national agencies dedicated to each type of science. With possible reductions in their operations, there is huge concern about lost data, disrupted studies, particularly longitudinal studies, where we risk losing the work of generations of scientists. That’s why Schmidt Sciences and our other science-based philanthropies are working to find ways to preserve data and, where possible, ensure critical work continues.

And while the challenges are many – from the changing nature of our planet, to the possibility of another pandemic, to securing funding for essential research, to the loss of accumulated scientific data – we know that science will not stop. Science offers us a constant source of respect and hope for the answers we, as a species, so stubbornly seek: Why are we here? How did life begin and how can it continue?

Main photo by Ben Gibbs

• Wendy Schmidt

  Published on November 26, 2025