Maciej Lewenstein graduated from the University of Warsaw in 1978 and later joined the Center for Theoretical Physics. He earned his PhD in 1983 in Essen, Germany. He worked at Harvard with Roy J. Glauber (Nobel Prize, 2005), at the CEA Paris-Saclay research center (1995–1998) with Anne L’Huillier (Nobel Prize, 2023), and at the JILA physics research center in the United States. He was also part of Leibniz University Hannover (1998–2005), and in 2005 he moved to Catalonia as an ICREA Professor and Scientific Director at the Institute of Photonic Sciences (ICFO) in Castelldefels. His interests include optics, quantum physics and information, statistical physics, as well as jazz and avant-garde music.