Dr. Priscilla Chan says she& husband Mark Zuckerberg want to invest in research "with the goal of curing disease" pic.twitter.com/g24u0wUroQ
— carolyn tyler (@ctylerabc7) September 21, 2016
It is an ambitious vision the power couple shared Thursday, saying they are donating that amount of money over the next decade to jump start research that will cure, prevent or manage all disease by the end of the century."That doesn't mean no one will ever get sick. It does mean our children and their children will get sick a lot less," Chan said.
Dr. Chan says initiative will donate $3-Billion over the next decade to try to cure all disease. pic.twitter.com/eWsFs0nlGT
— carolyn tyler (@ctylerabc7) September 21, 2016
Zuckerberg says most people die of four types of diseases: Cancer, heart, neurological, or infectious. He believes the answer is to fund research to create new tools and technologies to understand and target the source. "If we can help develop new tools that allow us to see these categories of diseases in new ways, then we can empower scientists all around the world to make faster progress and breakthroughs in these areas," Zuckerberg said.
Mark Zuckerberg says building new tools&technology can help cure, manage and prevent diseases by the end of century. pic.twitter.com/cS7b2fQsfE
— carolyn tyler (@ctylerabc7) September 21, 2016
The first tangible step is a bio hub in Mission Bay where the best and brightest from Stanford, Cal, and UCSF will collaborate."Scientists are very independent and haven't always wanted to work in teams, but I think this is the way forward," UC Berkeley molecular biologist Robert Tjian said.
If you think eradicating or managing disease in the next 80 years is more science fiction than science, supporters say major progress can be made. "It may be a stretch goal to say we'll do it by the end of the century, but its certainly not completely unrealistic," Stanford University president Marc Tessier-Lavigne said.
Microsoft's Bill Gates dropped by to applaud the new effort.
Surprise guest Bill Gates applauds the Chan/Zuckerberg Science Initiative. pic.twitter.com/6PffkwhdBK
— carolyn tyler (@ctylerabc7) September 21, 2016
Zuckerberg says "be patient".. goal of creating tools to help cure diseases will take billions and many years. pic.twitter.com/DzQLPcih8k
— carolyn tyler (@ctylerabc7) September 21, 2016
Crowd begins to gather in SF for big announcement by Mark Zuckerberg/Priscilla Chan re:health care&technology. pic.twitter.com/9L1Bmu1iFP
— carolyn tyler (@ctylerabc7) September 21, 2016
Mark Zuckerberg and wife Dr Priscilla Chan set to announce latest step in their philanthropic initiative. pic.twitter.com/5AURPmlx4J
— carolyn tyler (@ctylerabc7) September 21, 2016
Tech Titan, Ron Conway and UC President Janet Napolitano talk before key announcement by Mark Zuckerberg. pic.twitter.com/212oXJlcVF
— carolyn tyler (@ctylerabc7) September 21, 2016
Click here for more stories about Mark Zuckerberg.