New York — XPRIZE has named the first milestone award recipients in its $101 million Healthspan competition, recognizing 40 top teams from around the world developing innovative therapies aimed at extending healthy human lifespan. The announcement, made Monday at the XPRIZE Healthspan Awards Ceremony in New York City, marks a key step in the seven-year global initiative to close the gap between life expectancy and healthspan.
Launched in November 2023, the XPRIZE Healthspan competition is the first of its kind focused on proactive therapeutic solutions designed to restore muscle, cognitive, and immune function by a minimum of 10 years—with a goal of 20 years—in individuals aged 50 to 80, within the span of a single year. More than 600 teams from 58 countries entered the challenge, showcasing a wide range of scientific approaches to aging-related health decline.
Each of the 40 winning teams received a $250,000 Milestone 1 award to support the advancement of their proposed solutions as they move into clinical testing. The winners were selected based on the quality of their therapeutic concepts, scientific rationale, preliminary data, team expertise, and clinical trial plans.
“This competition isn’t just accelerating scientific progress—it’s challenging society’s beliefs about what’s possible in aging,” said Peter H. Diamandis, MD, founder and executive chairman of XPRIZE. “With this prize, we’re igniting a global healthspan revolution, and these semifinalists are leading the charge.”
The competition’s broad scope attracted a diverse field of participants, with proposed solutions ranging from biologic therapies and small-molecule drugs to lifestyle interventions, medical devices, nutraceuticals, and functional foods. Many teams are exploring combined or personalized approaches, integrating diet, pharmacology, cellular therapies, and digital monitoring tools. Targets include inflammation, mitochondrial function, stem cell regeneration, and neural growth—demonstrating the varied strategies being pursued to slow or reverse aging-related decline.
Alongside the main competition, XPRIZE also announced eight finalists for the $10 million Bonus Prize focused on facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD), one of the most common forms of muscular dystrophy. These teams were recognized for their promising work in developing therapeutic solutions that may also inform wider applications in aging and muscle regeneration.
“We are thrilled by the unprecedented global response to this challenge,” said Jamie Justice, Ph.D., executive director of XPRIZE Healthspan. “The range and creativity of proposed solutions—many of which are already grounded in strong preclinical evidence—is inspiring. These semifinalists represent the forefront of scientific innovation aimed at transforming how we age.”
With the first milestone behind them, the top 100 semifinalists, including the 40 award recipients, will now advance to the next phase of the competition, preparing for clinical trials that could shape the future of aging and health around the world.
