Once a year, the whole world looks to the Nobel Center in Stockholm, Sweden to announce the Nobel Prizes. The center recently announced plans to relocate to a new building, and out of 140 architects, 12 have been selected to compete to design the new home of the Nobel Foundation and its related cultural and educational activities. Notable designers include OMA, Herzog & de Meuron, BIG, and David Chipperfield Architects. The majority of the selected applicants were from Europe and Scandinavia, with only SANAA's Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa chosen from outside the region.

The Nobel Foundation's new building will incorporate areas for digital media, museum exhibitions, meetings, scientific conferences, a library, a cafe, and a shop. The architects have been asked to consider both the site's historical content and the natural environment in their plans. Each of the twelve firms will be expected to establish a close working relationship in cooperation with the client over the course of a very lengthy planning process.

"The competition will begin once the majority of the project's financing has been secured. Encouraging discussions are currently on-going with several donors, and we are confident that we will secure the necessary financing to begin the architectural competition and carry out the project during the current calendar year." says Lars Heikensten, Executive Director of the Nobel Foundation.

On December 1, 2011, the Nobel Foundation and the City of Stockholm signed a declaration of intent to work jointly towards the creation of a permanent Nobel Prize Center, to be located on Nybroviken, an inlet of the Baltic Sea in the heart of Stockholm, Sweden. They have agreed on a site on the Blasieholmen peninsula that is owned by the City of Stockholm.