ClinBrAIn 2

2. ClinbrAIn Funding Period: Artificial Intelligence for Clinical Brain Research

01/05/2026 to 30/04/2030

The Else Kröner Medical Scientist Kolleg ClinBrAIn trains a new generation of Medical Machine Learning Scientists (MML-Scientists) at the interface of machine learning and clinical neuroscience. It is embedded in Tübingen’s unique ecosystem of excellence in AI and clinical brain research. The program recognizes the need for close collaboration between computer science and medicine: ML methods must be tailored to clinical needs and data, while clinicians must become literate in data-driven tools and their limitations.
In its first funding phase, ClinBrAIn supported ten interdisciplinary, patient-focused PhD projects across a range of brain-focused disciplines including neurology, psychiatry, neurosurgery, and ophthalmology. Fellows addressed research projects motivated by real-world clinical challenges—ranging from seizure detection to disease progression modelling—using interpretable, robust machine learning (ML) techniques. All fellows were embedded in structured graduate programs and received dual supervision and tailored training.
ClinBrAIn created a thriving interdisciplinary network, played an important role in initiating and strengthening institutional structures at the interface of clinical brain research and AI. We also were able to recruit an academically excellent and diverse cohort of exceptionally motivated fellows, who were able to both produce first-rate scientific publications and enable a bi-directional knowledge transfer between AI and clinical brain research, supported by our interdisciplinary training program. As expected, we also faced challenges and delays in individual research projects, often due to the inherent challenges of interdisciplinary collaboration and communication. In the renewal phase, ClinbrAIn will continue its original primary mission, with strategic adjustments to account for recent scientific developments in the field and institutional developments in Tübingen, to emphasize promising research directions, and to put further emphasis on training activities.
Our long-term goal is to position ClinBrAIn as a leading program for training research scientists at the clinical-AI interface, setting a standard both in Tübingen and beyond.