The CERN announced that a group of private donors and philanthropic foundations has committed to contribute 1 billion dollars to boost the construction of the Future Circular Collider (FCC), a particle accelerator that will surpass the current Large Hadron Collider (LHC) in scale and ambition.
This is the first time that large fortunes have directly participated in a basic science project of this magnitude, marking a turning point in public-private collaboration.
A colossal infrastructure
The FCC is projected as a 91-kilometer circumference underground ring, excavated about 200 meters deep under French and Swiss territory. Its goal is to take over from the LHC by 2040, when it has exhausted its scientific potential.
Among the donors are the Breakthrough Prize Foundation (linked to Yuri Milner), the Eric and Wendy Schmidt Fund for Strategic Innovation, businessman Xavier Niel, and John Elkann, heir to the Agnelli family. A combination of philanthropy, long-term vision, and trust in the social value of knowledge.
CERN’s Director-General, Fabiola Gianotti, highlighted that this initiative reflects how fundamental science is no longer just a matter of states but has become a shared responsibility.
Beyond the LHC
The LHC, with its 27 kilometers in length, allowed the confirmation in 2012 of the existence of the Higgs boson, a discovery that redefined the standard model of physics and was recognized with the Nobel Prize. However, scientists know that to advance, more energy, more precision, and more data are needed.
The FCC is not an incremental improvement: it will allow the exploration of much higher energies, observe phenomena that today only exist in theory, and seek answers about the 95% of the invisible universe, composed of dark matter and dark energy.
Costs and benefits
The estimated cost of the project is around 17 billion dollars, which is why it has not yet received the definitive approval of the 25 CERN member states. The final decision is expected by 2028, after technical studies and political debates.
Although the FCC will not produce clean energy or capture CO₂ directly, its impact will be measured on other levels:
- More efficient superconductors, which could reduce losses in electrical grids.
- Advances in high-performance computing, useful for modeling complex climate systems.
- Improvements in detectors and sensors, with applications in medicine, industrial control, and environmental monitoring.
Long-term science
Beyond technology, the FCC represents a commitment to long-term science in a world seeking quick solutions. The climate crisis demands immediate changes, but also a solid scientific foundation that allows for rigorous innovation.
The FCC is not an immediate answer to the planet’s problems but an investment in collective capacity to understand, foresee, and transform. With risks, doubts, and legitimate debates, but with the conviction that renouncing knowledge has never been sustainable.
