Alexander Nicholas

Alexander Nicholas comes to XPRIZE having worked with universities around the world to design innovative education programs and identify barriers that keep students from reaching their potential. At XPRIZE, he creates incentivized prizes to advance critical and emerging learning platforms and grow innovation ecosystems for technology innovators and entrepreneurs to foster an inclusive and sustainable society. Before joining XPRIZE, Dr. Nicholas served as Senior Program Officer at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, where he built a vibrant network of institutions, designers, and researchers working together to untangle systemic barriers to institutional transformation. In addition, as a senior policy advisor and fellow at the US Commerce Department and the National Science Foundation, he co-designed innovation and education programs.   Dr. Nicholas received a Ph.D. in neuroscience from Florida State University before serving as a research scientist at Harvard University.