TUM Ambassador Alice P. Gast (Picture: Astrid Eckert/TUM).
Alice P. Gast
TUM Ambassador 2015
The Technical University of Munich (TUM) mourns the passing of Professor Alice P. Gast, who passed away after a prolonged illness on October 27th, 2025.
Prof. Gast knew from experience that global cooperation drives scientific progress. “Since we all grow up in different cultures, I think that international collaborations are very beneficial because we look at and tackle problems differently,” she once said. Her conviction was rooted in her own career, which spanned research projects across France, Mexico, Germany, and beyond.
Her connection to TUM began in 1999, when an Alexander von Humboldt Foundation award brought her to Munich to work with Prof. Erich Sackmann, one of Europe’s leading biophysicists. “It was a very important period in my career and my students and I enjoyed the hospitality of Professor Erich Sackmann and his students,” she recalled.
As President of Imperial College London from 2014 to 2022, Alice Gast was deeply committed to strengthening European scientific ties. Together with former TUM President Wolfgang A. Herrmann, she initiated and signed the European “Flagship partnership” between Imperial College London and TUM in 2018—a strategic alliance designed to advance research and innovation in fields such as Artificial Intelligence, robotics, digital medicine, bioengineering, and aerospace science. For her, partnerships like this were more than agreements—they were a shared commitment to advancing science for the benefit of society worldwide.
In 2015, TUM honored Alice Gast for her contributions to TUM by naming her a TUM Ambassador.
We remember Alice Gast for her scientific achievements, her leadership, and her unwavering belief in the power of collaboration. Her legacy will live on in the partnerships she built and the people she inspired.
Prof. Alice P. Gast, 1958–2025.
