Two Brno University of Technology graduates received Czech state honors at the President’s traditional ceremony on 28 October at Prague Castle. Tomáš Mikolov, an alumnus of the university’s Faculty of Information Technology, was awarded the Medal of Merit for contributions to science. Filip Maleňák, who studied at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Communication, received the same honor for contributions to technology. Their recognition highlights how technical education and research can produce innovations with both scientific significance and practical value.
Mikolov is internationally known for work in artificial intelligence, machine learning and natural language processing. He was one of the creators of Word2Vec, a method that represents words as mathematical vectors, allowing computers to capture relationships between meanings. The approach helped lay foundations for modern language models and other AI tools. He also works on more efficient language models through his company, BottleCap AI, and has received the Neuron Award. Maleňák created Záchranka, a mobile app that connects users to emergency medical services, shares their location, and can help when they cannot speak. It also identifies nearby automated external defibrillators. Used daily by people seeking help, the app has supported faster responses and more effective first aid. The two honorees followed different paths, but both turned technical expertise into tools with broad societal impact.
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