AI agents and 
cybersecurity

"The foundations of AI systems are flaky"

Krishna Gummadi on the agency of artificial intelligence, AI agents, and potential societal impacts

Recent studies on AI at our Institutes 

Researchers at the Max Planck Society are investigating the opportunities and risks of artificial intelligence

News

Working smarter, not harder: capuchin monkeys prefer pre-used tools

August 05, 2026
Behavioral Biology
New study reveals that visible traces of past tool use can outweigh material properties when primates select tools

Tiny vortices discovered on the sun’s surface

August 05, 2026
Astronomy Astrophysics Solar System
The world’s largest solar telescope made small vortices visible that are changing our understanding of the sun

When nature not only restores, but fortifies

July 29, 2026
Brain Climate Psychology
Review points to gap in existing environmental psychology literature
Further News

International

Rice University and the Max Planck Society establish a partnership on quantum materials

July 07, 2026
Quantum Physics
Through the “Quantum Materials – Rice and Max Planck Partnership” they advance global leadership in quantum materials and technology

Rescue mission for Ukrainian science

June 30, 2026
Europe Ukraine
Ukrainian female scientists are building bridges to Germany and Europe, thereby fostering academic freedom in Ukraine

Max Planck establishes first European Research Centre for Indian legal history

June 30, 2026
International Jurisprudence
The MPI for Legal History and Legal Theory is expanding its collaboration with India through the launch of the Centre for Legal History of India (CLHI)
Country portals

Career

Innovative training programmes for Phd students

Talented German and foreign junior scientists are offered the opportunity to earn a doctorate under excellent research conditions

Eight ERC Advanced Grants for Max Planck researchers 

June 23, 2026
ERC-Grants Europe
Eight Max Planck Society scientists have been awarded Advanced Grants from the European Research Council (ERC) in its latest funding cycle, each receiving up to €2.5 million for a period of five years to conduct their research projects.

Job Offers

Postdoc position (m/f/d) | Ultrafast Soft X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy of Nonequilibrium Dynamics in Correlated Materials

Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society, Berlin
August 06, 2026

Administrative Assistant (m/f/d)

Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems, Stuttgart, Stuttgart
August 04, 2026

Technician (m/f/d) | Laboratory Infrastructure

Max Planck Institute for the Structure and Dynamics of Matter, Hamburg
August 03, 2026
to the JobBoard
Career

Topic Specials

Climate and Transformation

In addition to climate forecasts, the consequences of climate change are increasingly becoming the focus of research at Max Planck Institutes

The brain

The human brain is the most complex organ that nature has ever produced: 100 billion nerve cells and many times more contact points give it capabilities that no supercomputer can match

Migration

The causes and consequences of human mobility and its history are central topics for research at Max Planck Institutes
Further Topic Specials

Publications


Illustration of networks and two persons
Cover of the brochure Living and Working in Germany
Cover Max Planck Research Magazine 1/2026
Annual Report 2025 cover - Max Planck Society
Cover - Highlights 2025 from the Yearbook of the Max Planck Society
Image brochure - Max Planck Society
Evaluation cover

From the Institutes


MPI for Demographic Research
Fewer Heart Attacks, More Cancer Cases, and Better Survival Chances
MPI for Plant Breeding Research
Unlocking hidden regions of plant chromosomes, 
MPI for Biogeochemistry
Climate warming induces stress protection of Amazon trees
MPI of Geoanthropology
Mixed cropping instead of monoculture
MPI of Biophysics
Cryoelectron tomography reveals nucleosomes in human cells
MPI for Terrestrial Microbiology
Energy Boost for Synthetic Cells
MPI for Astronomy
Young giant gas planet beta pic b refuses to reveal its origin
MPI for Astronomy
Probing the host galaxy of one of the most distant quasars
MPI for Heart and Lung Research
Neurotensin prevents harmful cardiac remodelling
MPI for Evolutionary Anthropology
Ancient teeth suggest Homo naledi fossils in a cave may all be female
MPI for Marine Microbiology
Symbiosis in Swiss lakes
MPI for Chemistry
El Niño: Amazon rainforest emits stress-defense molecules
MPI of Geoanthropology
Combing the General and the Specific for Urban Science and Policy
MPI of Biophysics
Searching for the Right Place to Divide Mitochondria
MPI for Evolutionary Anthropology
Molecular change helps balance nutrition and detoxification in modern humans
MPI for Evolutionary Biology
When does a tool become part of an individual?
MPI for Chemistry
Europe benefits from a faster renewable energy transition
MPI for Biology, Tübingen
How brown algae choose their mates

Events

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Multimedia


My Science and Me

What fascinates scientists about their research? What drives them? Science thrives on the people who shape it. Our picture gallery depicts aspects of research from the perspective of those who carry it out

Unraveling Behavior

Podcast
A science podcast about the patterns driving human judgment and decision making. In each episode,  Ana Sofia Morais sits down with a researcher to explore how people make decisions, how they handle risk, and how our surroundings and the online world shape our behavior.

Cell droplet research

Youtube-Video
A new hope for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. A film about the research of Anthony Hyman, who was awared the Koerber Prize 2022 and the Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences 2023.

Flight and Trauma

Video
Traumatic experiences from fleeing war zones can lead to distressing symptoms, which impair everyday life. Now with Ukranian sub-titles.

Optogenetics | briefly explained

Youtube-Video
Turning nerve cells on and off using pulses of light. Optogenetics is a relatively new field that uses light to control genetically modified cells. It is based on light-activated membrane proteins, such as bacteriorhodopsin or channelrhodopsin, that are built into nerve cells.

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