Robert B. Wilson

Facts

Robert B. Wilson

© Nobel Prize Outreach. Photo: Elena Zhukova

Robert B. Wilson
The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2020

Born: 16 May 1937, Geneva, NE, USA

Affiliation at the time of the award: Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA

Prize motivation: “for improvements to auction theory and inventions of new auction formats”

Prize share: 1/2

Work

Humans have been selling things to the highest bidder or buying things from the cheapest source for thousands of years. These days, goods and services change hands for astronomical values at auctions daily. Robert Wilson and Paul Milgrom have studied how auctions work. They have also translated their theories into practice and created new auctions for goods and services that are difficult to sell through traditional means, such as radio frequencies. Their discoveries have benefited sellers, buyers and taxpayers around the world.

To cite this section
MLA style: Robert B. Wilson – Facts – 2020. NobelPrize.org. Nobel Prize Outreach AB 2024. Fri. 13 Dec 2024. <https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/economic-sciences/2020/wilson/facts/>

Back to top Back To Top Takes users back to the top of the page

Nobel Prizes and laureates

Six prizes were awarded for achievements that have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind. The 12 laureates' work and discoveries range from proteins' structures and machine learning to fighting for a world free of nuclear weapons.

See them all presented here.

Illustration

Explore prizes and laureates

Look for popular awards and laureates in different fields, and discover the history of the Nobel Prize.