The Czech Institute of Informatics, Robotics and Cybernetics CTU joins this year’s Brain Awareness Week festival organized by the Czech Academy of Sciences, which takes place from 9 to 15 March 2026 as part of the global initiative. In the programme published recently by the Czech Academy of Sciences two representatives of CIIRC will participate: on Wednesday, 11 March, Milan Němý will give a lecture entitled “Artificial Intelligence in Brain Diagnostics: From White Matter to Tumours”, and on Thursday, 12 March, the institute’s Scientific Director, Prof. Vladimír Mařík, will present a lecture entitled “Brain Activity and Artificial Consciousness”.
Milan Němý, head of a research group in the Department of Cognitive Systems and Neurosciences (COGSYS) at CIIRC CTU, also works at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden and has long focused on research into early changes in the brain and the search for sensitive biomarkers for early diagnosis. In his Brain Awareness Week lecture, he will show how modern methods of artificial intelligence and machine learning are fundamentally transforming the possibilities of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) analysis and contributing to earlier and more accurate diagnosis of brain diseases – from neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease to brain tumours.
“Thanks to artificial intelligence, we are now able to identify subtle structural changes in magnetic resonance data that would otherwise remain hidden. This opens the way to earlier detection of disease and potentially more effective treatment,” says Milan Němý. His research has been awarded a number of prestigious prizes and grants in recent years, including the Jan Bureš Award (2023), a GAČR Junior Star grant (2024), and the Junior Faculty Award at the international AD/PD™ 2025 conference.
The festival will also feature the Scientific Director of CIIRC CTU, Prof. Vladimír Mařík, with a lecture entitled “Brain Activity and Artificial Consciousness”. He will offer broader parallels between the functioning of the human brain and current artificial intelligence systems and will focus on the question of whether and how technical systems can exhibit properties reminiscent of consciousness. He will introduce the audience to the basic principles of brain function and modern intelligent systems and show where their capabilities converge and where fundamental differences remain.
“The question of whether artificial intelligence can achieve something we could describe as consciousness is not just a technological problem. It is a topic at the intersection of neuroscience, computer science and philosophy, and it forces us to rethink what consciousness actually is and what it means to be intelligent,” adds Vladimír Mařík on the topic, which he has long addressed in his publications as well. He has contributed, for example, to the book “Essays on Consciousness Towards Artificial Intelligence” and is also the author of the popular science publication “Why Not Be Afraid of Artificial Intelligence?”, in which he clearly explains the principles and impacts of contemporary AI.
CIIRC CTU has long been engaged in research in the field of neuroscience at the intersection of artificial intelligence, cognitive sciences, assistive technologies and medicine. A key role is played by the COGSYS (Cognitive Systems and Neurosciences) department, which connects brain data analysis, machine learning and clinical research, for example in the areas of neurodegenerative diseases, epilepsy and cognitive disorders. These activities also include the BEAT group led by Prof. Olga Štěpánková, which focuses on assistive technologies and support for people with neurological or cognitive difficulties. Significant research is also being carried out by Václav Křemen in the field of brain signal analysis and neurotechnologies in cooperation with the Mayo Clinic in the USA. CIIRC CTU is also involved in the implementation of the CLARA project, a European centre of excellence linking artificial intelligence, advanced computational methods and brain research with the aim of bringing new insights into neurodegenerative diseases and contributing to their earlier diagnosis.
Science Accessible to the Public
Brain Awareness Week is the largest popularization festival focused on brain research in the Czech Republic and is part of the international Brain Awareness Week initiative. It offers lectures, workshops and discussions with experts from various fields, and its aim is to bring the latest knowledge about the functioning of the human mind and the possibilities of modern medicine closer to the public.
The participation of CIIRC CTU in the festival underlines the growing importance of artificial intelligence in the field of brain diagnostics and research and represents an opportunity to glimpse the future of medicine, where technologies help doctors make more accurate and timely decisions.
More information, including the detailed programme, is available at www.tydenmozku.cz.
