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Partners & Collaborators
Since 2010, the Convergent Science Network has brought together leading institutions in neuroscience, robotics, AI, and cognitive science. These partnerships have enabled 120+ podcast episodes, international conferences, and groundbreaking interdisciplinary research.
Funding & Institutional Support
European Commission — FP7 / FET Programme
Brussels, Belgium
The Convergent Science Network was supported through the Future and Emerging Technologies (FET) programme of the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) work programme under Framework Programme 7 (FP7) of the European Commission. This coordination action funded the development of future real-world technologies at the intersection of biology and engineering, with a total investment of over €1 million.
Convergent Science Network Foundation
The Netherlands
Founded by Paul Verschure, Tony Prescott, and Anna Mura, the CSN Foundation aims to break silos in science and technology by fostering interdisciplinary collaboration. It coordinates the network’s activities, including the podcast, conferences, and summer schools that bring together researchers from neuroscience, cognitive science, robotics, and AI.
Academic Partners
University of Sheffield
Sheffield, United Kingdom
A world top-100 research university and Russell Group member. Tony Prescott is Professor of Cognitive Robotics and co-founder of Sheffield Robotics — a cross-disciplinary research institute bringing together academics from the University of Sheffield and Sheffield Hallam University to make Sheffield a leading hub for robotics research.
Universidad Miguel Hernández de Elche
Alicante, Spain
Paul Verschure currently holds a Distinguished Professorship at the CSIC Alicante Institute of Neuroscience and the Department of Health Psychology at UMH. The 2025 BCBT Winter School was held in Alicante, producing the latest season of podcast episodes.
Ernst Strüngmann Forum
Frankfurt am Main, Germany
An independent foundation that facilitates the expansion of knowledge by providing an open environment for researchers to examine high-priority problems from multiple perspectives. The Forum partnered with CSN to produce the “Collaboration” podcast series (2021–2022), exploring how collaboration arises and why it fails across disciplines. The resulting book “The Nature and Dynamics of Collaboration” [put link] was published by MIT Press. The interviews were conducted by Paul Verschure and co-hosted with the Forum’s director, Julia Lupp, and the co-organisers, Jenna Bednar, Bhavani Rao, and Andreas Roepstorf.
Conference & Publishing Partners
Living Machines Conference
International (since 2012)
The annual International Conference on Biomimetic and Biohybrid Systems, organized by the CSN. Now in its 14th edition (2025, Sheffield), it brings together scientists from biology, neuroscience, physics, robotics, and AI. Many podcast guests are speakers at Living Machines. Proceedings are published by Springer as part of the Lecture Notes in Computer Science series.
Springer Nature
Heidelberg, Germany
Publisher of the Living Machines conference proceedings in the Lecture Notes in Computer Science (LNCS) and Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence (LNAI) series. 14 volumes published since 2012, documenting cutting-edge research in biomimetic and biohybrid systems.
Industry & Technology
Eodyne Systems S.L.
Barcelona, Spain
Founded by Paul Verschure in 2014, Eodyne develops the Rehabilitation Gaming System (RGS) — a scientifically validated platform for cognitive and motor neurorehabilitation in stroke and other neuropathologies. The company bridges academic research and clinical application, bringing lab innovations to patients across all phases of recovery.
Future Memory Foundation
The Hague, The Netherlands
Founded by Paul Verschure, the Future Memory Foundation pioneers new approaches to the commemoration and preservation of European history, particularly the Holocaust and Nazi crimes. It uses neurotechnology and immersive experiences to create powerful memorial environments.
Education & Training
BCBT — Barcelona Cognition, Brain and Technology Schools
Barcelona (2010–2019) • Alicante (2025)
The annual BCBT schools promote a shared systems-level understanding of the functional architecture of the brain and its possible emulation in artificial systems. Running since 2008, these intensive programs bring together graduate students, postdocs, and leading researchers for lectures, workshops, and the podcast interviews that form the core of the CSN archive. The schools have been held in Barcelona (summer) and most recently in Alicante (winter 2025).
How Our Partners Contribute
Guest speakers — World-class researchers share their work in podcast interviews after lectures and conferences
Venues & logistics — Universities host the BCBT schools and Living Machines conferences where recordings take place
Funding — EU programmes and foundations provide financial support for coordination activities
Publishing — Springer publishes conference proceedings; MIT Press publishes forum outcomes
Technology transfer — Spin-offs like Eodyne bring research discussed in podcasts to real-world applications
Interdisciplinary network — Partners connect researchers across neuroscience, robotics, AI, psychology, and biology
Exploring the convergence of neuroscience, robotics, and AI through conversations with leading researchers since 2010.
A project of the Convergent Science Network Foundation.
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