text: Dmitry Kaminskiy is hoping his million dollar gift will trigger a new group of 'supercenternarians' A Moldovan multi-millionaire whose dream it is to live forever has promised to give $1 million to the first person to reach the age of 123. Dmitry Kaminskiy, a senior partner of Hong Kong-based firm, Deep Knowledge Ventures, is hoping his million dollar gift will trigger a new group of 'supercenternarians'. He says research into stem cells, tissue rejuvenation and regenerative medicine will allow people to live beyond 120 - an age that has been quoted as the 'real absolute limit to human lifespan'. 'We live in the most exciting era of human development when technologies become exponential and transformative,' Kaminskiy told DailyMail.com. 'They may not realise it, but some of the supercentenarians alive today may see the dawn of the next century if they live long enough for these transformative technologies to develop. 'I hope that my prize will help some of them desire longer lifespans and make their approaches to living longer a little more competitive.' French born Jeanne Calment currently holds the record, having lived to age 122.5. She died in 1997. Already, a number of supercentenarians are candidates to best Calment's record. The oldest verifiable supercentenarians living now are Jeralean Talley, at 115 years, and Susannah Mushatt Jones, also at 115 years. Both are Americans, and Talley is older by 44 days. In the last few years, major anti-aging companies, such as Google's Calico and J. Craig Venture's new San Diego-based genome sequencing start-up Human Longevity Inc, have launched. Along side this, Billionaires like Larry Ellison, Sergey Brin, Peter Thiel, Paul F. Glenn, and Dmitry Itskov are also funding research into longevity science. One of the oldest supercentenarians living today is Jeralean Talley, at 115 years old. She is pictured here with  a photograph showing her and her late husband Alfred  in her home in Inkster, Michigan . Google has invested in taxi firms, smart thermostats and even artificial intelligence but it is also setting its sights on immortality - or at least increasing our lives five-fold. In an interview with Bloomberg, Google Ventures' president Bill Maris said he thinks it's possible to live to 500 years old. And this will be helped by medical breakthroughs as well as a rise in biomechanics. He has already ploughed money into genetics firms and cancer diagnostic startups and said: 'We have the tools in the life sciences to achieve anything that you have the audacity to envision. I just hope to live long enough not to die.' Mr Maris has advised Aurolab in the development of a hydrophobic acrylic lens for cataract blindness, and helped develop Google’s Calico project. Calico is a research and development company set up in 2013 by Google and Apple to tackle 'ageing and associated diseases.' Google co-founder Larry Page said the project would focus on 'health, wellbeing and longevity' and last September Calico partnered with AbbVie to open a research centre into neurodegeneration and cancer. Although these firms are focused on extending life naturally, there is also a group that believes machines will be the key to extending lives beyond 120 - an age that has been quoted as the 'real absolute limit to human lifespan'. Itskov is the founder of the 2045 Initiative with the goal of helping humans achieve physical immortality within the next three decades. Reuters reported that gerontologist Dr Aubrey de Grey, chief scientist at SENS Research Foundation and Anti-Aging Advisor to the US Transhumanist Party, thinks scientists may be able to control aging in the near future. 'I'd say we have a 50/50 chance of bringing aging under what I'd call a decisive level of medical control within the next 25 years or so,' he said. Kaminskiy is hopeful people will soon start living to 150 years of age with longevity science improving. Studies in stopping and reversing aging in mice have already shown some success, and people around the world are generally living longer all the time. For example, life expectancy hit an all time high of nearly 79 years-old in 2014 in America according to a report from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics. Additionally, Britain's oldest person, Ethel Lang, just died at the age of 114. She was believed to be the last person living in the UK who was born in the reign of Queen Victoria. Whether Kaminskiy's million dollar prize will encourage people to live longer is still to be seen. But this isn't the first time Kaminskiy has made news with in the longevity field using his resources. At January's JPMorgan Health Care Conference in San Francisco, he recently bet Dr Alex  Zhavoronkov, PhD, CEO of anti-aging company Insilico Medicine Inc. for a million dollars in stock who would live beyond 100 years of age. 'We live in the most exciting era of human development when technologies become exponential and transformative,' Kaminskiy told DailyMail.com. 'They may not realise it, but some of the supercentenarians alive today may see the dawn of the next century' 'Longevity competitions may be a great way to combat both psychological and biological aging,' Dr. Zhavoronkov said. 'I hope that we will start a trend.' Zhavorokov thinks longevity science today resembles the computer industry in the 70s or networking in mid-90s. 'Most of the pieces are there,' he said. 'We just need a product or a service to transform the way we live. The revolution in longevity is just around the corner and it is time to seriously engage in the field.' Historically speaking, prizes have made a difference in the way science and culture has evolved, and also in the way people look at the world. The Nobel Prizes, given out in Stockholm, Sweden every year, are perhaps the most famous and coveted of all awards on the planet. At January's JPMorgan Health Care Conference in San Francisco, Dmitry Kaminskiy (right) made a bet with Dr Alex Zhavoronkov (left), PhD, CEO of anti-aging company Insilico Medicine Inc. for a million dollars in stock who would live beyond 100 years of age . Scientists and peace activists careers can change overnight by winning the prestigious prize. It's possible the million dollar prize for the longest living person ever on the planet will also evolve into a well-known award. Perhaps other wealthy enthusiasts will step forward to offer new longevity awards after a supercentenarian reaches age 123. Maybe a trend will be set, and new awards for age 135, or even age 150 will be established.
target: The large prize is being offered by businessman, Dmitry Kaminskiy .
  He hopes money will help create a new group of 'supercenternarians'
  Jeanne Calment holds the record of oldest person, dying aged 122.5 .
  He has made a $1m bet with Dr Alex Zhavoronkov on who will die first .