2026 Gates Cambridge Scholars announced

68 new scholars have been selected to form the Gates Cambridge Class of 2026, and we are delighted to announce that two of them will be joining us at King’s next Michaelmas Term.

Maya Koka was born and raised in Texas and is currently at Trinity College Dublin. Her academic work focuses on metaethics, ordinary language philosophy, and the philosophy of law, with particular attention to how linguistic agency breaks down in contexts of gender-based violence. She will be studying a MPhil at Cambridge.

Maleakhi Wijaya is from Indonesia, completed his MPhil at Cambridge five years ago, and will be pursuing a PhD. His previous research focused on explainable AI and the need to address the gap beyond between accuracy and trustworthiness. He has co-founded a company that deploys AI systems across healthcare settings. 

Professor Deborah Prentice, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge and Chair of the Board of the Gates Cambridge Trust, said:

Gates Cambridge is a brilliant programme that, year after year, takes in exceptional students from around the globe and prepares them to tackle the world’s biggest challenges. We are enormously proud of our Gates Cambridge scholars and look forward to welcoming the Class of 2026.

About Gates Cambridge

The Gates Cambridge Scholarship programme was established through a US$210 million donation to the University of Cambridge from the then Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in 2000, driven by the vision of Bill Gates Sr.