- Dr. Julie Elie won the 2026 Coller-Dolittle Prize for decoding the core vocabulary of zebra finches, identifying 11 core calls and their meanings.
- Her research found that zebra finches use calls to announce identity and activities, recognizing each other through vocal signatures, and they confuse calls with similar meanings more than similar sounds.
- The prize, established in 2024, includes a $10 million grand prize for achieving two-way human-animal communication, and Elie's work used machine learning and behavioral experiments over more than a decade.
- Experiments showed birds learned to skip unrewarding calls, indicating they understand the meaning of their vocalizations, with Professor Jonathan Birch praising the rigorous methodology.
- Shortlisted projects included research on African striped mice using ultrasonic squeaks, bonobos combining calls into sequences, and interpreting chimpanzee vocalizations.
- Advances in AI and machine learning are accelerating animal communication research, with Jeremy Coller predicting a breakthrough by 2030 for two-way communication.