- For Spearheading Research and Development, Clinical Application and Worldwide Adoption of Multichannel Cochlear Implant -

TOKYO, Sept. 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Honda Foundation has selected Professor Graeme M. Clark AC, an Australian medical doctor and neuroscientist and laureate professor emeritus at the University of Melbourne, and Dr. Ingeborg Hochmair, an Austrian electrical engineer, co-founder and CEO of MED-EL, as joint recipients of the 2026 Honda Prize. The international award in science and technology honors their achievements in spearheading the research, development, clinical application and worldwide adoption of the multichannel cochlear implant. The foundation is a public interest incorporated foundation established by Soichiro Honda, founder of Honda Motor Co., Ltd., and his younger brother Benjiro.

Image 1: Professor Clark

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Image 2: Dr. Hochmair

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In 1980, the Honda Foundation established the Honda Prize to acknowledge research achievements that contribute to "the creation of a truly humane civilization." Foreseeing the potential of ecotechnology(*), the Honda Prize is Japan's first international award in the scientific and technological fields that recognizes insights paving the way for next-generation technologies and efforts related to their application and widespread usage.

The award ceremony for the 47th Honda Prize will take place at the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo, Japan, on Monday, November 16, 2026, where Professor Clark and Dr. Hochmair will be presented with medals, certificates and a total cash prize of 10 million yen.

(*) Ecotechnology: A human-friendly philosophy founded on science and technology that harmonizes the natural and human environments and addresses social issues, going beyond the conventional meaning associated with ecology.

Image 3: Diagram Explaining the Cochlear Implant

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About Cochlear Implants

A cochlear implant is a medical device for individuals with severe hearing loss who have difficulty understanding speech even with hearing aids. While hearing aids amplify sound, cochlear implants compensate for improperly functioning hair cells by converting sound into electrical signals and stimulating the auditory nerve via electrodes inserted in the cochlea. Multichannel cochlear implants divide sound into frequency bands and use multiple electrodes to send more sound information to the auditory nerve.

In the 1970s, Professor Clark and Dr. Hochmair independently advanced conventional cochlear implants, which had only enabled users to perceive the presence and rhythm of sound and limited speech understanding, into multichannel cochlear implants. Researching in Australia and Austria, they tackled issues in electrode design, signal conversion, nerve stimulation, surgical methods and safety. They came up with precise designs that selected necessary speech information and determined electrode stimulation, enabling clinical use of multichannel cochlear implants.

Professor Clark, a former otolaryngologist, started his research on the cochlear implant in 1967 in electrophysiology and led a team of scientific, medical and engineering experts at the University of Melbourne. In 1978, his team performed multichannel cochlear implant surgery, bringing the technology into clinical use. He collaborated with industry to commercialize research results, which were subsequently developed into cochlear implants by Cochlear Limited, established as a division of Nucleus Group, leading to worldwide adoption.

Dr. Hochmair started working on the cochlear implant in 1975 at the Technical University in Vienna at the invitation of Dr. Erwin Hochmair, an electrical engineer who later became her husband. In 1977, together with Dr. Erwin Hochmair and Professor Kurt Burian, otolaryngologist, the team achieved the implantation of the multichannel cochlear implant. Drs. Ingeborg and Erwin Hochmair continued to refine the device and its sound processing technology before founding MED-EL to advance cochlear implant innovation and accessibility.

Today, cochlear implants represent the first medical technology to restore a human sensory function, serving as a foundation for human-machine interaction and neuroengineering. To date, more than one million people worldwide have received cochlear implants, which enable language acquisition and education for children, social participation and employment for adults, and enhanced quality of life for the elderly.

- Details of achievement commentaries and past Honda Prize laureates

Please see the Honda Foundation official website.

Official Website: https://www.hondafoundation.jp/en/index.html 

Achievement Commentary: https://www.hondafoundation.jp/commemoration/index_en/285 

Honda Prize Laureates: https://www.hondafoundation.jp/en/winner.html