Asad Madni Elected an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh

Asad Madni ’69, M.S. ’72, a distinguished adjunct professor of electrical and computer engineering at the UCLA Samueli School of Engineering, was recently named an honorary fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland’s national academy, for his trailblazing work on GyroChip — a life-saving sensing technology that revolutionized navigation and stability for aerospace and automotive safety systems.

Founded in 1737 and chartered in 1783, the scholarly society has announced its 2025 class of new fellows, honoring leading figures in science, the arts, business, public service and academia. In addition to electing annual fellows with strong ties to Scotland, the society names a select number of honorary fellows who are “individuals of truly exceptional distinction.” This year, Madni is joined by Prince Edward, the Duke of Edinburgh, as one of the two honorary fellows.

“To be included with past recipients of this accolade whose contributions have shaped the evolution of human progress is a most gratifying and humbling experience,” Madni told the Royal Edinburgh Society. “I feel truly fortunate to have my and my team’s scientific and technical innovations and contributions play an important role in saving millions of lives around the world; in helping us extend the limits of space exploration and enhancing our understanding of the universe; and in providing for the defense and security of our nation and our allies.”

Madni is widely recognized for leading the invention and commercialization of the Quartz Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems GyroChip, which revolutionized navigation and stability across aerospace and defense, commercial aviation and automotive safety systems. More than 55 million GyroChip sensors have been installed in over 80 models of passenger vehicles for electronic stability control and rollover protection, saving numerous lives around the world. The technology is also used in more than 90 types of aircraft, including the Boeing 777 and its extended versions, most business jets, missiles, unmanned aerial vehicles, helicopters and NASA’s Mars rover, Sojourner.

He also led the development of the control system for Hubble Space Telescope’s star selector, which provides the telescope with unprecedented pointing accuracy and stability, resulting in the capture of remarkable images that have enhanced our understanding of the universe. As Hubble orbits Earth at 18,000 miles per hour, the system offers a highly stable reference required to maintain the telescope’s aim, with an accuracy comparable to pointing at a U.S. quarter from 200 miles away and a stability variation of less than the coin’s width over a 24-hour period. More than 35 years after Hubble’s launch, the system continues to deliver exceptional accuracy and stability, enabling the capture of more than 1 million groundbreaking images that have led to discoveries such as Pluto’s moons and galaxy formations thousands of light-years away.

Among Madni’s numerous honors are the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Medal of Honor, the American Association of Engineering Societies’ John Fritz Medal and the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Prince Philip Medal. He has been elected to the National Inventors Hall of Fame, the Space Technology Hall of Fame, the National Academy of Engineering, the National Academy of Inventors, the Canadian Academy of Engineering, the Royal Academy of Engineering and the European Academy of Sciences and Arts. He has also been awarded six honorary doctoral degrees and seven honorary professorships. In 2019, the IEEE Eta Kappa Nu honor society created the Asad M. Madni Outstanding Technical Achievement and Excellence Award to honor his contributions. In 2022, Tau Beta Pi engineering honor society established a Distinguished Alumni Award in his honor. He also received the Alumnus of the Year and Lifetime Contribution awards from UCLA Samueli, as well as the Professional Achievement Award from the UCLA Alumni Association.

Previous honorees of the Royal Society of Edinburgh include Nobel laureate and UCLA chemistry and biochemistry professor emeritus J. Fraser Stoddart, former president of Ireland Mary McAleese, 18th century polymath Benjamin Franklin and actor and activist Alan Cumming.