Joshua Zahl, a mathematician widely known for his groundbreaking proof of the three-dimensional Kakeya conjecture, has been appointed as a Chair Professor at the Chern Institute of Mathematics at Nankai University.

Prof. Zahl completed his Ph.D. in 2013 at the University of California, Los Angeles, under the mentorship of Terence Tao. His research centers on harmonic analysis and combinatorics, with particular interests in the Kakeya conjecture, sum-product problems, and the Erdős distance problem. His highly original contributions have been published in top-tier journals such as Inventiones Mathematicae and the Journal of the American Mathematical Society, earning him extensive recognition from the international mathematical community.

This year, Prof. Zahl, in collaboration with mathematician Wang Hong, successfully proved the three-dimensional Kakeya conjecture. This significant breakthrough has received high praise from experts, including Terence Tao, and has generated considerable interest in academic circles. Recently, Prof. Zahl has been invited to deliver a 45-minute lecture at the 2026 International Congress of Mathematicians.

Nankai University President Chen Yulu, along with Vice President Bai Chengming, met with Prof. Zahl on the morning of June 23. President Chen extended a warm welcome, commending Prof. Zahl’s outstanding achievements in harmonic analysis and expressing confidence that his appointment would provide fresh vitality and intellectual resources to the university’s mathematics institutes. Emphasizing Nankai’s storied excellence in mathematics and its designation as a national “Double First-Class” discipline, Chen voiced his hope that Prof. Zahl would use his international standing to help attract more world-class scholars and foster wide-ranging collaborations, thereby supporting the advancement of mathematics at the university.

Prof. Zahl remarked that the Chern Institute's vibrant academic environment and exceptional research team create an ideal platform for his work. He expressed his enthusiasm for collaborating with Nankai’s faculty and students to tackle complex mathematical problems and contribute to the continued development of the university’s mathematics discipline.

（Edited and translated by Nankai News Team.)