Selection process
Eligibility criteria
The eligibility criteria explains who can enter the Prize.
- The Prize is open to organisations worldwide including academic groups, companies or non-profits, as well as partnerships between these.
- Entries must be in English
- Applicants must comply with the Prize Terms & Conditions.
Judging criteria
The judging criteria for the Longitude Prize on ALS are designed to measure progress towards the Prize’s overarching aims.
The Prize’s Technical Assessors and multidisciplinary judging panel will evaluate all eligible applications against the judging criteria for each stage. Throughout the Prize stages, the criteria will evolve to reflect the increasing ambition and rigour required of competing teams.
Judging criteria Stage 1
Eligible applicants interested in entering Stage 1 of the Prize must demonstrate their potential against the criteria outlined below
Use of innovative computational methods (30%)
The proposed approach should harness cutting-edge AI or computational biology techniques to uncover novel therapeutic targets - or groups of targets - for ALS (or provide new evidence for known but unvalidated targets for ALS).
Multidisciplinary expertise (20%)
Teams must demonstrate deep expertise across disciplines, including advanced computational biology and a robust understanding of ALS pathophysiology, to enable effective target discovery.
Robust scientific rationale and milestones (20%)
Applications should present a compelling, evidence-based rationale for the proposed approach, supported by a clear, milestone-driven plan that outlines how it will lead to novel target identification.
Replication and data robustness (10%)
Applications must include strategies for validating target associations across alternative datasets to ensure the robustness, reliability, and translational potential of findings.
Accelerated pathway to clinical impact (10%)
Applications should prioritise translational potential, including opportunities for drug discovery or repurposing, with a focus on accelerating progress towards treatment for ALS.
Leveraging resources (10%)
Applications should demonstrate strong value for money and a clear plan for making effective use of all available resources and data, including core Prize support and any additional inputs such as external funding, unique datasets, or in-kind contributions.
Judging criteria for Stages 2, 3 and Winner's Award
In subsequent stages of the Prize, the criteria will shift to focus on tangible progress through the therapeutic target discovery pipeline – specifically, the identification, prioritisation, and validation of therapeutic targets
Development of therapeutic targets
Applications should demonstrate meaningful progress in the identification, prioritisation, and validation of therapeutic targets for ALS. Successful applicants will integrate diverse and innovative forms of evidence to establish both the biological relevance of the targets and their potential for therapeutic development.
Feasibility of approach
Projects must be underpinned by a clear and realistic plan, with well-defined objectives, expected outcomes, and execution steps. Strong applications will anticipate potential risks and outline appropriate mitigation strategies across all stages of the development roadmap.
Capability to deliver
Teams should show a strong understanding of the multidisciplinary expertise and resources required to deliver impact – from computational discovery to biological validation and translational development. Applications should reflect both the current capability of the team and a plan to evolve or expand it as needed through the project lifecycle.
