The Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM) has named MATH+ Chair Andrea Walther of Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin a 2025 SIAM Fellow. The SIAM Fellows Program honors SIAM members for their outstanding contributions to applied mathematics and related fields. Andrea Walther is being recognized for her work in algorithmic optimization and automatic differentiation. Congratulations!

Siam Recognizes Outstanding Researchers In Applied Mathematics

(SIAM) recently announced the 2025 Class of SIAM Fellows, honoring distinguished members for their exceptional research and service to the community. Through their contributions, SIAM Fellows play a vital role in advancing applied mathematics, computational science, and data science. The newly named SIAM Fellows will be recognized at a reception during the SIAM/CAIMS Annual Meetings in Montréal, Québec, Canada, in July 2025.

Andrea Walther has been an active member of SIAM since 2011 and was elected to the SIAM Council in November 2023. Upon being named a 2025 SIAM Fellow, Walther expressed her gratitude, stating: “SIAM activities, such as conferences, smaller workshops, and activity groups have played a pivotal role in my career. Through SIAM, I have met many colleagues who have inspired numerous research ideas. Receiving this award from SIAM is a great honor for me.”

Andrea Walther’s Research, Career, and Contributions

Since October 2019, Walther has served as a MATH+ Professor of Mathematical Optimization at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. She joined the MATH+ Board in November 2022 and was elected MATH+ Chair in October 2024, alongside Claudia Schillings (FU Berlin) and Sebastian Pokutta (TU Berlin/ZIB).

Walther’s research focuses on nonlinear optimization, particularly in developing and analyzing adjoint-based optimization methods, new approaches for nonsmooth optimization, and optimization methods for machine learning.

She studied Mathematics and Economy at Universität Bayreuth, earning her PhD in 1999 and her habilitation in 2008—both from Technische Universität Dresden. During this time, she held several research positions at TU Dresden, including a Junior Professorship. In 2009, she was appointed Professor of Mathematics and its Applications at Universität Paderborn, a role she held until 2019 when she moved to Berlin.

As a dedicated MATH+ scientist, she co-organized the Thematic Einstein Semester (TES) “Mathematical Optimization for Machine Learning” in the summer semester of 2023. She has been involved in the following MATH+ research projects:

• AA2-7: Sparse Deep Neuronal Networks for the Design of Solar Energy Materials
  Andrea Walther, Stephan Schmidt, Bernd Rech, Eva Unger
• AA4-14: Data-Driven Prediction of the Band-Gap for Perovskites 
  Claudia Draxl, Sebastian Pokutta, Daniel Walter, Andrea Walther
• AA5-6: Convolutional Proximal Neural Networks for Solving Inverse Problems
  Gabriele Steidl, Andrea Walther
• EF1-23: On a Frank-Wolfe Approach for Abs-Smooth Optimization 
  Sebastian Pokutta, Andrea Walther, Zev Woodstock

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About SIAM:

Founded in 1952, the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM), promotes the advancement of mathematics and computational science for applications in engineering, industry, science, and society. SIAM fosters research that leads to innovative mathematical and computational methods, supporting professionals in implementing mathematical theory for practical use.

LINKS:

• SIAM Announces 2025 Class of Fellows
• SIAM website
• More about Andrea Walther at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin