Berggruen Prize Essay Competition

The annual Berggruen Prize Essay Competition seeks to stimulate new thinking and innovative concepts while embracing cross-cultural perspectives across fields, disciplines, and geographies. The competition poses fundamental philosophical questions of significance for both contemporary life and the future. As such, this initiative complements the Berggruen Prize for Philosophy & Culture, which recognizes major lifetime achievements in advancing ideas that have shaped the world.

The competition awards a prize of $50,000 USD for essays submitted in English and $50,000 USD for essays submitted in Chinese. The winners are celebrated at an annual award ceremony, and their winning essays are published to give readers insight into perspectives of both East and West.

The inspiration for the competition originates from the role essays have played in the past, including the essay contest held by the Académie de Dijon. In 1750, Jean-Jacques Rousseau's essay Discourse on the Arts and Sciences, also known as The First Discourse, won and notably marked the onset of his prominence as a profoundly influential thinker. Similarly, our competition aspires to create a platform for groundbreaking ideas and intellectual innovation.

We invite essays that follow in the tradition of renowned thinkers such as Rousseau, Michel de Montaigne, and Ralph Waldo Emerson. Submissions should present novel ideas and be clearly argued in compelling ways for intellectually serious readers. We are not seeking peer-reviewed academic work. Below is a selection of exemplary essays that epitomize the genre and style we look for. While some of these pieces are authored by already distinguished thinkers, we have chosen them primarily for their exceptional embodiment of genre and style.

• Frankfurt, H. G. (1971). Freedom of the will and the concept of a person. Journal of Philosophy, 68(1), 5-20.
• Fukuyama, F. (1989). The end of history? The National Interest, 16, 3–18.
• Huntington, S. P. (1993). The clash of civilizations? Foreign Affairs, 72(3), 22-49.
• Nagel, T. (1974). What is it like to be a bat? The Philosophical Review, 83(4), 435-450.
• Sontag, S. (1966). Against interpretation. In Against Interpretation and Other Essays (pp. 3-14). Farrar, Straus & Giroux.
• Frank, A. (2024). The coming second copernican revolution. Noema Magazine.
• Swanigan, P. (2024). It is time to give up hope for a better climate & get heroic. Noema Magazine.
• Seth, A. (2025). The Mythology of Conscious AI. Noema Magazine.

Award

Each language category will have a prize of $50,000 USD. If there is more than one winner in any given year, the amount will be distributed evenly among the winners.

Ceremony

The Institute will host an annual ceremony to recognize the essay winners.

Publication

The Institute will publish winning essays through BI Press or Noema. Essays are subject to editing and rounds of review as part of a standard editorial process.

Key Dates

• Submissions open: March 17th, 2026
• Submissions close: August 17th, 2026

Essay Theme

A New Axial Age?

The Axial Age (c. 800-200 BCE), as philosopher Karl Jaspers referred to it, encompassed a time when the world’s great religions, ethical systems, and philosophical frameworks arose relatively simultaneously, from Buddhism and the Upanishads to Confucius, Socrates, and the Hebrew prophets. Driven by contemporaneous intellectual, technological, and social developments, this era forged civilizational constructs that are with us to this day.

Might civilization yet again be at the ‘hinge of history,' in which the events that occur in this distinct point in time significantly influence the trajectory of the future? Are we undergoing a pivotal transformation of consciousness as a result of rapid technological development and its myriad social, economic, and political consequences? What conditions may or may not give rise to this possibility? Through what constituencies and by what mechanisms might the transformation take place?

With no shared ideational framework, dwindling trust in institutions, and global shifts in spirituality and bequeathed faiths, humanity is beginning to question its understanding and reconsider its beliefs.

While the ‘Axial Age’ as a concept itself is contested within academia, this competition does not seek essays arguing for or against its validity or veracity. Instead, you are invited to write about any aspect of the moment humanity finds itself in today and the future that is emerging.

For 2026, we are accepting creative fiction. Your essay might reflect on, but by no means be limited to, the following themes:

• the foundational ideas and institutions underpinning present and future societies
• the philosophical prospects and implications of the current era
• the future of human evolution and life in light of the ecological crisis
• shared conceptual foundations for a common future
• global transformation driven by technology and the rise of artificial intelligence
• the end of the global order and its ramifications
• the future of life in an age of advances in biotechnology and synthetic life

These are but a few examples of the possible themes. We invite you to conceive of and select your own topic as well.

Eligibility Criteria

• Length: Submissions may not exceed 10,000 words in English or 15,000 characters in Chinese. This excludes diagrams, tables of data, endnotes, bibliography, or authorship declaration.
• Submission Limit: Entrants are limited to one submission per year, either in English or Chinese.
• Co-authorship: Co-authorship is allowed.
• AI Usage: Entrants must not use generative AI to create content or substitute original thought. Entrants must engage with primary sources rather than AI-generated summaries. AI may only be used in the following three cases: 1) Proofreading and grammar assistance; 2) If AI is the subject of research, entrants may include excerpts from AI-generated conversations strictly as supporting material within their argument, and 3) to translate an essay originally written in another language into either English or Chinese. To uphold intellectual integrity, all AI usage, including AI-assisted translations, must be explicitly disclosed at the front page of the submission. Failure to do so will result in disqualification.
• Originality: Submissions must be original content that has not been published in any form or in any publication.
• Creative Fiction Inclusion: For 2026, creative fiction is accepted.
• No Monetary Consideration Required: No purchase, payment or financial contribution is necessary to participate in the competition.

Evaluation

Essays will be judged on originality, clarity, and style. Our determinations in all such matters are final.

Please note the Berggruen Prize Essay Competition is committed to intellectual freedom and respects the independence of its authors. The views expressed in submitted or awarded essays are solely those of the authors and do not represent the views or institutional positions of the Berggruen Institute.

The competition is open to the public and is intended to foster original and independent ideas. It is not a competition for academic papers and is not governed by academic disciplinary standards or institutional affiliations.

Submission Requirements

All essays must be submitted no later than 23:59 (11:59 PM) Pacific Time (PT), on August 17th, 2026. Please note that the only accepted file format for submissions is PDF.

Submissions may be made as soon as registration opens. We recommend that you submit your essay well in advance of the deadline to avoid any last-minute complications. Only English submissions are accepted on this page. For Chinese language submissions, click here.

Code of Conduct

The entrant represents and warrants as follows: (i) that the submitted essay is the entrant’s original work of authorship; (ii) that the submitted essay does not infringe upon the copyrights, trademarks, rights of privacy, publicity, intellectual property rights, or other rights of any person, entity, or other party; (iii) that the submitted essay does not violate any law or regulation; and (iv) that the submitted essay has not been published in any form or in any publication.

Submissions by entrant must not only be entirely original works of authorship and content, submissions may not have yet been published in any form or in any other publication. If your submission contains small amounts of material or content (i.e. a paragraph or two) that has been previously published, please let us know so that we can evaluate whether or not we can accept such a submission. To that end, please note in your submission the specific text that has been previously published elsewhere, and please provide the name of the publication where such text was previously published.

Submissions may not: (i) include any language, expression, or content that constitutes hate speech or defamation in any form whatsoever; (ii) contain any content that is harmful to children, threatening, abusive, harassing, tortious, defamatory, vulgar, obscene, libelous, invasive of another's privacy, hateful, or racially, ethnically, or otherwise objectionable; (iii) violate any applicable laws or regulations; (iv) impersonate any person or entity; (v) include any content that you do not have the right to make available or that infringes any patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright, or other proprietary rights of any person or entity; or (vi) include content containing advertisements or other commercial solicitations without our prior written permission. We will make such determinations, in our own discretion. Should there be a determination by us, in our sole discretion, of breach of this prohibition, the submitted essay will not be further considered by us, and its submission shall be considered null and void ab initio.

Terms and Conditions

Upon the essay's submission by you to us, it is hereby understood and agreed that the entrant has irrevocably conferred upon the Berggruen Institute the authority to process and use the entrant’s personal data. Such data will be used for purposes associated with and related to the competition. These purposes encompass, but are not limited to, the evaluation and communication concerning the submission, as well as public engagements pertaining to the competition finalists.

From the moment of submission until the official announcement of the winners on the Berggruen Institute website, the entrant grants the Berggruen Institute a non-exclusive, royalty-free, fully paid, perpetual, irrevocable, and worldwide license to reproduce, distribute, display, and create derivative works of the submitted essay (along with a name credit) in connection with the competition and promotion of the competition, in any media now or hereafter known. To that end, when you upload, share with, or submit an essay to us, you grant us the non-exclusive, royalty-free, fully paid, perpetual, irrevocable, and worldwide license to: (i) use, host, store, reproduce, modify, prepare derivative works (such as translations, adaptations, summaries, or other changes), communicate, publish, publicly perform, publicly display, and distribute your essay in any manner, mode of delivery, or media now known or developed in the future; and (ii) permit other users to access, reproduce, distribute, publicly display, prepare derivative works of, and publicly perform your content through us (e.g., for users to re-blog, re-post, or download your content). Upon the official announcement of the winners, all rights and licenses to the non-winning submissions will be automatically released.

You are entirely responsible for any content that you submit to us. We may remove, refuse to display, or refuse to publish your essay, in our sole discretion, and without any liability to you whatsoever including, but not limited to, if we determine that your essay, or the content contained therein, violates our code of conduct, these terms, or any applicable laws or regulations.

The entrant agrees to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless the Berggruen Institute and its affiliates, directors, officers, employees, and agents from and against any and all claims, losses, damages, liabilities, and expenses, including legal fees and costs, arising out of or related to: (i) any breach of any of the foregoing representations, warranties, covenants, or agreements by entrant; (ii) any infringement claims related to your submission; and (iii) your negligence, intentional misconduct, or fraud.

The Berggruen Institute reserves the right to cancel, modify, postpone, or suspend the competition in any way, at any time, and in its sole discretion without liability. The competition shall be subject to the rules stated herein, and by entering, all participants agree to be bound by these terms and conditions. In the event of any conflict or other inconsistency between these rules and any advertisements, promotional or fundraising materials, emails or announcements relevant to the competition, these rules will govern.

By participating in the competition, the entrant agrees to be bound by the rules stated herein, and further agrees not to sue or assert any claim against the Berggruen Institute in connection with the competition; provided, that if applicable law prohibits such a covenant, release or waiver of claims, the entrant hereby waives the right to seek or accept damages in any proceeding and to reimburse the Berggruen Institute for any and all expenses or costs associated with such claim (including reasonable attorneys’ fees, court costs and the amount of any judgment or settlement).

Contact

All inquiries regarding the essay competition should be sent to essay@berggruen.org. Due to the high volume of correspondence we receive, we cannot guarantee a response to every inquiry. In particular, questions with answers available on our website may not be addressed.

Important!

Only use the form below to submit an essay in English. If you'd like to submit an essay in Chinese, please click here.