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❓ What's the secret to crushing it at the Innovation Workshop?

✨ That’s a wrap on the 13th Innovation Workshop! The project pitches and awards are done, but the best part is yet to come. Huge congrats to the students — you’ve put in incredible work and now you truly know how to take an idea and turn it into a working tech product. Here’s to turning these student projects into thriving businesses! We can’t wait to see what you achieve next. 🏆

⚡️ The closing ceremony of the Innovation Workshop is in full swing!

🌱 Russia is rapidly expanding its soybean production, with the Far Eastern Federal District accounting for about 38% of the national harvest. However, local breeders face a strict climatic constraint: a short frost-free period means soybeans must mature quickly to beat autumn frosts, often resulting in stunted plants with pods sitting dangerously close to the ground. Researchers from Skoltech, working alongside colleagues from the Far Eastern Research Institute of Agriculture, evaluated 63 soybean genotypes across three growing seasons in Khabarovsk Krai to define the optimal plant architecture for the region.

“The challenge is not simply to make soybean mature earlier,” says Yawar Habib, a junior research scientist at the Skoltech Biomed Technologies Center, the first author of the study, and a Skoltech PhD graduate from the Agrobiotechnologies and Engineering program. “The plant also needs enough architecture to support pod formation and to be harvested efficiently. We wanted to find out whether early maturity could be combined with a taller, better-branched and more harvest-friendly plant type.”

Published in Frontiers in Plant Science, the study reveals that strong branching is surprisingly independent of maturity timelines. This finding clears a path for breeders to develop high-yielding, heavily podded varieties without lengthening the growing season. The team identified four standout genotypes that successfully fuse early maturity with taller stature, robust branching, and higher first-pod placement for seamless combine harvesting.

“For breeders, the value of this work is that it turns a complex set of traits into a clear selection strategy,” says Professor Elena Potokina, who leads agrobiotech research at the Skoltech Biomed Technologies Center. “The next step is to evaluate these promising genotypes more widely across locations and seasons and determine how well the selected architecture translates into yield and harvesting performance under regional conditions.”

Skoltech is part of the VEB.RF Group.

📚 Today in our #book from an Innovation Workshop mentor column — three recommendations! Sharing her book picks is Anastasia Myrsina — her professional focus at the VERBA LEGAL law firm covers data protection, pharmaceuticals, and healthcare. She is also a curator and organizer of the Side Bar book club. 🔹 Rick Rubin, The Creative Act: A Way of Being

"The book is available in Russian, but I highly recommend reading it in the original. It's not just about creativity in the conventional sense — it's about noticing ideas, staying curious, not being afraid of uncertainty, and turning something that doesn't yet exist into something real. I'd strongly recommend it to anyone creating new products, projects, and ideas — and to anyone trying to nurture and preserve their creative spark."

🔹 Pavel Alferov, Project Management: How to Do the Right Things Right (Russian only)

"One of the best books on project management. It answers a host of practical questions: how to choose a methodology, who should make decisions and how, how to negotiate, and what to focus on to actually take an idea through to implementation. And I have a special appreciation for the entire Skolkovo Business Review series — I love it. Strong, practical books on management, brand building, and more."

🔹 Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged

"And, of course, I can't help but recommend some fiction. The book offers a vivid perspective on entrepreneurship, science, personal responsibility, the market, and the role of the state — and it makes you re-examine your own beliefs and arguments. It's also an interesting way to explore, through a novel, an important layer of 20th-century economic, political, and social ideas."

Stay tuned for more recommendations from Innovation Workshop mentors! Skoltech is part of the VEB.RF Group.

📚 Meet the latest addition to our book column #book from a mentor of the Innovation Workshop! Today, Paulina Bazarova, founder of Ethos and venture consultant, recommends Negotiating the Impossible by Deepak Malhotra.

"One of the most useful books on negotiation I've ever read. It's not about manipulation or standard tactics — it's about how to negotiate in situations that seem practically impossible. After reading it, you start looking at negotiations, people, and decision-making under pressure completely differently. Especially useful for founders and anyone who works extensively with people."

Deepak Malhotra is a professor at Harvard Business School and a consultant on international negotiations. In his book, he shows how to break through the toughest deadlocks without pressure, money, or force — using three tools: framing, process, and empathy.

📺 Why do we find ourselves rewatching Twilight or Friends for the hundredth time when we're feeling down? As Skoltech Neuro Professor Philipp Khaitovich explains, when stress levels peak, a familiar show can offer a comforting anchor because viewers already know every plot twist, conflict, and resolution.

"When a person is stressed, the brain prefers to rely on something where its predictions are guaranteed to work out. In a new, uncertain situation with an unfamiliar plot, it's anyone's guess whether your predictions will pan out or fall flat again."

Professor Khaitovich views rewatching old favorites not as a mindless habit, but as a genuinely effective way to lower anxiety. The key is not to hide from reality indefinitely — after a cozy mental break, the brain still has to jump back into tackling real-world challenges. What movie or series is your go-to "comfort blanket" when you're stressed? Let us know in the comments! 👇

⚛️ How can we make hydrogen-powered transport more affordable? Platinum-based catalysts are the heart of eco-friendly fuel cells, yet their astronomical cost remains a major barrier to mass adoption. Now, researchers from Southern Federal University, alongside colleagues from Skoltech, the Institute of Catalysis of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and Bauman Moscow State Technical University, have found a compelling solution. The team engineered a multi-component alloy combining platinum with palladium, copper, nickel, and cobalt to form compact, accessible nanoparticles. By leveraging computer simulations, researchers uncovered how to precisely control atom distribution during heat treatment: heating the material to 600°C drives roughly 75% of the platinum atoms straight to the outer surface of the nanoparticle.

"Combining experiments with computer simulations helped us understand exactly how atoms of different metals redistribute within nanoparticles when heated. We showed that this process can be controlled to produce materials with tailored properties. This is an important step toward more affordable and longer-lasting fuel cells," comments Ilya Chepkasov, Senior Research Scientist at the Skoltech Materials Center and co-author of the study.

The resulting material demonstrates exceptional resilience. After 10,000 operating cycles, it loses a mere 22% of its activity (compared to a steep 40% drop in commercial alternatives) and proves four times more active overall than standard benchmarks. The findings are published in the Journal of Alloys and Compounds, supported by the Russian Science Foundation. Skoltech is part of the VEB.RF Group.

🧠 Skoltech to host New Russia-China joint research and education center for neurosciences and neurotechnologies The initiative got the green light at the 30th meeting of the Russia-China Commission in China, co-chaired by Russian Deputy Minister of Science and Higher Education Denis Sekirinsky. Philipp Khaitovich from Skoltech Neuro will serve as the center's scientific director. To hash out the initial steps, a delegation from the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Skoltech's main partner on the project, visited campus. The delegation included Distinguished Professor Xie Peng and Associate Professor Yiyun Liu, who heads the NHC Key Laboratory of Diagnosis and Treatment of Brain Diseases. Representing Skoltech at the meeting were Skoltech President and RAS Academician Yulia Gorbunova, Professor Philipp Khaitovich, Head of Academic Relations Department Dmitry Piradov, and Assistant Director for Administration at the Biomed Technologies Center Daria Petrova. The guests toured the institute's labs and, most importantly, dove into a detailed roadmap for the new center. The parties agreed to team up on joint research and develop a shared laboratory for the molecular diagnosis and treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders as part of the Belt and Road Initiative. Skoltech is part of the VEB.RF Group.

🎉 Skoltech leads Russian universities in A* AI publication contribution Skoltech researchers account for around 20% of Russia’s contribution to A* publications in artificial intelligence and machine learning from 2020 to 2025. In terms of contribution to AI publications, the Institute outperforms the nearest Russian university by more than 27%. These findings are based on a study by the HSE University Scientometrics Center covering the period from 2020 to 2025, which analyzed publications across ten international A*-level conferences according to the ICORE 2026 ranking. Between 2020 and 2026, Skoltech researchers produced over 300 A*-level publications at leading international venues such as NeurIPS, ICML, ICLR, CVPR, and ACL. The Skoltech Artificial Intelligence Center conducts research spanning machine learning, generative models, computer vision, data analysis, and engineering AI, bridging fundamental science with industrial applications.

“Skoltech’s strong position in international artificial intelligence research reflects the systematic work of the Institute’s research teams and the development of a strong research environment. Partnerships with leading technology companies, including Sber, enable Skoltech researchers to work on challenges that have both scientific and practical significance,” said Evgeny Burnaev, RAS Professor, Skoltech Vice President for AI Development and Director of the Skoltech Artificial Intelligence Center.

Pajama day at the Innovation Workshop: the ultimate balance of deep focus and pure comfort! 🩴✨

✈️ And, of course, the already familiar Rubber Flight!

🧠 The next intensive visited by Yulia Gorbunova was "Neural Interface." During this course, students build a prototype electromyograph — a device that reads electrical muscle activity. They analyze EMG signals and immediately apply the technology in practice: from controlling a robotic arm to developing interfaces for rehabilitation devices. Throughout the intensive, master's students master several skills at once: 🔹 soldering and assembling electronic circuits, 🔹 programming Arduino, 🔹 analyzing and interpreting medical data.