Speakers
Keynote Speaker
Dr. Charlie Demené
Physics for Medicine, ESPCI, Paris, France
Charlie Demené is an associate Professor at ESPCI PSL research University, and a researcher at Physics for Medicine Paris, France. After a PhD at the Institut Langevin on brain functional ultrasound (fUS) imaging (2015), he joined the Geneva University Hospital to develop transcranial cerebral ultrasound localization microscopy (2017). His major contributions to the field are now-widely used SVD-based spatiotemporal filtering techniques of ultrasonic images and the development of ultrafast ultrasound and fUS imaging for neonatal brain applications, with the first proofs of concept of cerebro-vascular resistivity mapping and fUS-based connectivity mapping. His current research interests spans ultrasound microvascular imaging and signal processing, brain functional imaging using ultrasound, ultrafast ultrasound localization microscopy and ultrasound bioeffects for sonogenetics and mechanotransduction.
Keynote Speaker
Dr. Clare Elwell
University College London (UCL), UK
Dr. Clare Elwell is a Professor of Medical Physics at University College London (UCL) and Vice Dean for Impact for UCL Engineering. She develops functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) technologies to image the human brain and her research projects include studies of acute brain injury, infant brain development, autism, migraine and malaria. She currently leads the Brain Imaging for Global Health (BRIGHT) project which delivered the first brain images of infants in Africa. Clare is Past President of the Society for Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy of the International Society on Oxygen Transport to Tissue. She is current President of the London International Youth Science Forum and is the Founder and a Trustee of the charity Young Scientists for Africa. In July 2024 she delivered the UCL Festival of Engineering – Six Days to Change the World which attracted over 10,000 attendees of industry partners, policy makers, general public and school and community groups to engage with engineering innovations at UCL. In December 2025 she was awarded the prestigious UCL Medal for the lasting mark her work has made on the UCL community and beyond.
Keynote Speaker
Dr. Jeroen Siero
University Medical Center Utrecht (UMCU), The Netherlands
Dr. ir. Jeroen C.W. Siero is an associate professor at UMC Utrecht (UMCU), where he leads the Advanced MRI Gradient Hardware and Methods Group and is a Principal Investigator in the Translational Neuroimaging group.
His research advances MRI techniques for cerebrovascular imaging and the study of brain function. On the hardware side, he is co-inventor of ultrasonic gradient technology for silent and fast MRI. Recently, he has been extending this work toward autonomous MRI, with a first system already running at an elderly care center bringing neuroimaging closer to the patient. On the methods side, he develops and applies methods to probe brain hemodynamics and physiology, with a focus on perfusion, oxygen metabolism, and neurovascular coupling in cerebrovascular disease, including small vessel disease. A central recent project is the translation of advanced perfusion imaging into routine clinical practice. Here, quantitative multi-delay arterial spin labeling (ASL) for cerebral blood flow and cerebrovascular reactivity mapping is integrated into the clinical workflow through automated, PACS-ready pipelines. This pipeline supports the assessment of steno-occlusive disease, moyamoya, and stroke, bringing quantitative hemodynamic markers to the point of patient care and treatment.
Keynote Speaker
Dr. Dimo Ivanov
Max Planck Institute for Empirical Aesthetics, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Dimo Ivanov is a physicist specializing in high-field MRI and quantitative neuroimaging. He obtained his PhD in Physics in 2012 at the University of Leipzig / Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences. After postdoctoral work at Maastricht University (2012-2017) and an Assistant Professorship there from 2017, he became Independent Research Group Leader at the Max Planck Institute for Empirical Aesthetics and Head of the 7 Tesla MR Core structure at CoBIC in 2025. His work spans structural, perfusion, functional, and quantitative MRI across 7T and 3T systems.
Keynote Speaker
Dr. Marcel Aries
Intensive Care, Maatricht University Medical Center+, The Netherlands
Dr. Marcel Aries is a neuro‑intensivist at Maastricht University Medical Center+ and an internationally recognised expert in cerebral hemodynamics, multimodal neuromonitoring, and outcome prediction in critical care. He leads clinical research within the MHENS Institute of Maastricht University and collaborates with Cambridge University on advanced signal analysis and integrative invasive and non‑invasive brain‑monitoring strategies. He is the founder of the HersenStrijd Fund, which promotes brain‑injury prevention through science‑driven public health initiatives. In 2026, Marcel was appointed as the Netherlands’ first prevention‑intensivist, tasked with identifying and reducing preventable ICU admissions through early detection, risk stratification, and targeted interventions. Known for uniting clinical precision with a prevention‑first mindset, Marcel is also a passionate advocate for everyday brain safety—he always wears a bicycle helmet.
