The Virtual Brain
The Virtual Brain is an open-source neuroinformatics platform (GPLv3) that simulates whole-brain activity to generate EEG, MEG, BOLD, and SEEG signals for clinical and academic neuroscience researchers. Founded in 2008, it is funded primarily by European research grants and deployed in clinical trials such as EPINOV.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2008
- HeadquartersMarseille, France
- Headcount1,001–5,000
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What The Virtual Brain does
The Virtual Brain (TVB) is an open-source neuroinformatics platform, founded in 2008 and coordinated across research groups in Berlin (Charité), Marseille (Aix-Marseille Université), and Toronto (Baycrest/Rotman), that builds whole-brain dynamical models capable of generating clinically realistic EEG, MEG, BOLD, and SEEG signals. Its core technical differentiator is a hybrid approach that reduces micro-level neural complexity to macro-level organization using methods from statistical physics, enabling brain simulation on commodity hardware (a MacBook, a faculty server, or a supercomputer such as Piz Daint) rather than requiring massively parallel cellular-level simulators that remain years from clinical use. The platform merges individual anatomy from brain imaging data (MRI, fMRI, DTI, PET) with state-of-the-art mathematical modeling to produce patient-specific "virtual brain twins," and is extended through modules such as Virtual Brain Inference (probabilistic inference on whole-brain models), Virtual Brain Cloud (cloud deployment on EBRAINS), siibra atlas integration, and the Python-based Brain Connectivity Toolbox (bctpy).
The product line is anchored by the TVB Simulator/Brainsimulator, distributed free of charge under GPLv3 via direct download for Windows, Mac, and Linux, as well as through DockerHub, PyPI, and Conda Forge, and is used in the EPINOV clinical trial across 13 French hospital centers (~400 patients) — the world's first randomized multi-site trial of predictive brain modeling in epilepsy surgery. The platform's primary customer segments are clinical researchers and physicians (epilepsy surgery, stroke, brain tumor, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's), academic neuroscience researchers, graduate students, and — at the periphery — pharmaceutical and medical device companies. TVB does not generate commercial software revenue; its operations are funded primarily by European Commission research grants (approximately €83 million cumulatively across TEF-Health, eBRAIN-Health, and Virtual Brain Twin), supplemented by small workshop/training fees (€80–250 per attendee). Co-founders Prof. Petra Ritter, Prof. Randy McIntosh, and Prof. Viktor Jirsa, who also chair the INCF governing board and lead EU consortia, anchor the scientific direction.
The Virtual Brain firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- The Virtual Brain
- Legal name
- The Virtual Brain
- Website
- https://thevirtualbrain.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2008
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1,001–5,000 employees
- Short description
- The Virtual Brain is an open-source neuroinformatics platform (GPLv3) that simulates whole-brain activity to generate EEG, MEG, BOLD, and SEEG signals for clinical and academic neuroscience researchers. Founded in 2008, it is funded primarily by European research grants and deployed in clinical trials such as EPINOV.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
The Virtual Brain industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Computational Neuroscience Software
- NAICS
- Scientific Research and Development Services (5417), Computer Systems Design and Related Services (54151), Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (518210)
- SIC
- Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373)
- akta.pro primary industry
- STEM & Lab Simulation Media (Virtual Labs, AR/VR) (EDAGALAF)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Game-Based CS & Computational Thinking Platforms (EDAFANAD)
Keywords
Where The Virtual Brain is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Marseille
- HQ country
- France
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices3 records
Markets served
The Virtual Brain business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Open Source Software Distribution: TVB is distributed as free open-source software under GPLv3 license. Revenue is not generated directly from software sales but through research grants and institutional funding.
- Research Grants and EU Funding: The organization receives significant funding from European Commission through Horizon Europe programs including Virtual Brain Twin (€10M), TEF-Health (€60M), and eBRAIN-Health (€13M) grants.
- Workshop and Training Fees: Educational workshops such as the Bayesian Data Analysis workshop charge registration fees (€250 per person for 3-day training). TVB Node workshops charge €80-200 for students and €100-225 for non-students.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Free open-source software |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Workshop registration fees |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels8 records
The Virtual Brain product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Virtual Brain (TVB) is a free, open-source neuroinformatics platform for full-brain simulation. It generates biologically realistic EEG, MEG, BOLD, and SEEG signals by reducing micro-level complexity to macro organization through statistical physics methods, merging individual brain anatomy from imaging data with mathematical modeling. The platform supports clinical applications including epilepsy surgery planning, stroke recovery prediction, Alzheimer's research, and personalized brain twin creation for patients with neurological and psychiatric disorders.
Product overview
The Virtual Brain is an open-source neuroinformatics platform that serves as a simulation engine for whole-brain modeling. The core offering is TVB Simulator (Brainsimulator), a free downloadable software for Windows, Mac, and Linux that generates personalized brain simulations. The platform includes Virtual Brain Twin for clinical applications, Virtual Brain Cloud for EBRAINS cloud deployment, Virtual Brain Inference for probabilistic inference, and 46 EduCases for education. TVB integrates with siibra for EBRAINS atlas access, the Brain Connectivity Toolbox (Python) for network analysis, Stan for Bayesian analysis, and NEST for multiscale co-simulation.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- TVB Simulator (Brainsimulator) The main open-source neuroinformatics platform for full-brain simulation. Generates biologically realistic brain signals (EEG, MEG, BOLD, SEEG) by reducing micro-level complexity to macro organization through statistical physics methods. Free download for Windows, Mac, and Linux under GPLv3 license, targeted at clinicians, neuroscientists, and academic researchers.
- Virtual Brain Twin A formalized framework for creating personalized digital brain twins for individual patients. Provides virtual brain simulations for improving diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of brain disorders including epilepsy, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and psychiatric diseases.
- Virtual Brain Cloud (TVB on EBRAINS) Cloud-based deployment of TVB through Europe's digital research infrastructure EBRAINS. Provides tvb-library Simulator on EBRAINS JupyterLab for notebook-based execution and tvb-framework Web Application for browser-based access requiring an EBRAINS user account.
- Virtual Brain Inference (VBI) A flexible and integrative toolkit for efficient probabilistic inference on whole-brain models, published in eLife journal.
- TVB EduCases 46 educational cases providing hands-on learning for The Virtual Brain platform using a learning-by-doing approach for neuroscience education.
- TVB Node Workshops and Training Events
Quantifiable outcome
- Predictive brain modeling validated in EPINOV clinical trial with 400 patients across 13 centers
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use The Virtual Brain
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
The Virtual Brain technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration6 records
AI capability6 records
Feature7 records
The Virtual Brain partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
16 partnerships are on record, tiered major, core, strategic and supporting.
- Virtual Brain Twin ConsortiummajorEBRAINS-led neuroscience project awarded €10 million by European Commission for Virtual Brain Twin for personalized treatment of Psychiatric Disorders, coordinated by Viktor Jirsa.
- TEF-Health ConsortiummajorTesting and Experimentation Facility Health AI and Robotics with €60 million funding from EU and member states. Prof. Petra Ritter leads the project with 51+ participants from 9 European countries.
- eBRAIN-Health ConsortiummajorHorizon Europe project with €13 million funding coordinated by Prof. Petra Ritter, developing federated cloud platform for modeling neurobiological processes with 18 European partners.
- EBRAINScoreTVB serves as the simulation engine in Europe's digital research infrastructure EBRAINS. The partnership provides cloud access to TVB services, integration with the EBRAINS human brain atlas via siibra, and access to EBRAINS facility hubs.
- Human Brain Project (HBP)coreTVB is directly linked to the Human Brain Project and participates in HBP summits, workshops, and code development. EBRAINS evolved from HBP infrastructure.
- Charité BerlincoreCharité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin hosts the Brain Simulation Section led by Prof. Petra Ritter, implementing the EBRAINS Virtual Brain Cloud Facility Hub.
- Aix-Marseille Université (AMU)coreInstitut de Neurosciences des Systèmes (INS) at AMU hosts TVB research under Prof. Viktor Jirsa's direction, coordinating Virtual Brain Twin project.
- Baycrest / Rotman Research InstitutecoreToronto facility led by Prof. Randy McIntosh contributes to TVB development and hosts workshops on computational neuroscience.
- Allen InstitutemajorTVB connects to the Allen Institute's Mouse atlas, enabling integration of mouse brain data into simulations.
- AI-MINDstrategicAI-MIND collaboration towards AI revolution in brain healthcare, part of strategic initiative connecting Virtual Brain Cloud and EBRAINS.
- International Neuroinformatics Coordinating Facility (INCF)strategicTVB co-leads Prof. McIntosh and Prof. Ritter serve as chair and deputy chair of INCF, supporting open and FAIR science through standardization and reproducibility.
- Stan (Probabilistic Programming Platform)supportingStan is used for Bayesian inference in TVB simulations. Michael Betancourt, Stan core developer, conducted workshops with INS in Marseille on Bayesian Data Analysis.
- Codebox / CodemartsupportingSoftware development partners contributing to TVB architecture, GUI development, and integration work.
- FENIX Supercomputing NetworksupportingEBRAINS Facility Hub network aligned with FENIX to provide user access to HPC resources including data storage, analysis, and simulation.
- Human Connectome ProjectsupportingTVB modeling workflows use data from Human Connectome Project database for resting-state network modeling examples.
- NEST (Neural Simulation Tool)supportingTVB supports multiscale co-simulation with NEST, enabling bridging between whole-brain and microscopic neural simulations.
Scale indicators12 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
The Virtual Brain competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Allen Institute for Brain Science: Major brain-mapping research organization producing large-scale atlases (mouse, human, macaque) and datasets. TVB integrates with Allen Institute atlases for whole-brain simulation, making it both a data provider and a competing voice in shaping neuroscience research priorities.
- Human Brain Project / EBRAINS: European digital research infrastructure for neuroscience that hosts TVB as its full-brain simulation engine. EBRAINS is a peer in the broader sense of being a platform competing for neuroscience research mindshare, while simultaneously being TVB's most important distribution channel.
- DeepMind (Neuroscience Research): Google DeepMind's neuroscience research division applies large-scale AI and deep learning to brain function and disorders. It represents a competing methodological paradigm (data-driven AI vs. mechanistic simulation) that could ultimately deliver similar clinical predictions for brain disorders.
Direct peers
- FSL (FMRIB Software Library): Comprehensive open-source library of tools for FMRI, MRI, and DTI brain imaging analysis from Oxford. Like TVB, it is a foundational open-source neuroimaging platform widely adopted in academic research; both compete for researcher workflows.
- NEURON Simulation Environment: Widely-used open-source simulation environment for individual neurons and networks of neurons. Like TVB, it serves computational neuroscience research and is a foundational tool in the field, though it focuses on cellular-level detail rather than whole-brain dynamics.
- SPM (Statistical Parametric Mapping): Long-established MATLAB-based software package for brain imaging analysis from UCL. TVB and SPM both serve the neuroimaging research community with widely-adopted open-source tools and represent foundational academic alternatives to commercial neuroscience platforms.
- BrainVISA: Open-source neuroimaging software platform providing anatomical analysis pipelines for MRI data. TVB and BrainVISA both serve the computational neuroscience community with open-source tools that process brain imaging data, though BrainVISA focuses on morphology while TVB focuses on dynamics.
- Blue Brain Project: EPFL-led initiative to build biologically detailed digital reconstructions and simulations of mouse and eventually human brains. Both TVB and Blue Brain pursue whole-brain modeling through mathematical and computational methods, though Blue Brain focuses on cellular-level reconstruction while TVB uses statistical-physics reduction.
- NEST (Neural Simulation Tool): Open-source simulator for spiking neural networks at the microscopic scale. TVB and NEST are directly integrated via multiscale co-simulation, addressing different but complementary scales of brain modeling — NEST at the cellular level, TVB at the whole-brain level.
- FreeSurfer: Open-source neuroimaging analysis toolkit for structural MRI and cortical surface reconstruction. Both serve computational neuroscience researchers and share open-source distribution models; FreeSurfer handles structural analysis while TVB handles dynamic whole-brain simulation.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
The Virtual Brain social profiles
Digital presenceThe Virtual Brain compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
The Virtual Brain financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
The Virtual Brain leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
The Virtual Brain funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
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The Virtual Brain M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
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Frequently asked questions about The Virtual Brain
What does The Virtual Brain do?
The Virtual Brain (TVB) is a free, open-source neuroinformatics platform for full-brain simulation. It generates biologically realistic EEG, MEG, BOLD, and SEEG signals by reducing micro-level complexity to macro organization through statistical physics methods, merging individual brain anatomy from imaging data with mathematical modeling. The platform supports clinical applications including epilepsy surgery planning, stroke recovery prediction, Alzheimer's research, and personalized brain twin creation for patients with neurological and psychiatric disorders.
Is The Virtual Brain a public or private company?
The Virtual Brain is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was The Virtual Brain founded?
The Virtual Brain was founded in 2008. It employs 1,001 to 5,000 people.
Where is The Virtual Brain based?
The Virtual Brain is headquartered in Marseille, France, in the Europe region.
How does The Virtual Brain make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Open Source Software Distribution is the primary driver. The others are research Grants and EU Funding and workshop and Training Fees.
Who are The Virtual Brain's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Allen Institute for Brain Science, Human Brain Project / EBRAINS and DeepMind (Neuroscience Research). Direct peers are FSL (FMRIB Software Library), NEURON Simulation Environment, SPM (Statistical Parametric Mapping), BrainVISA, Blue Brain Project, NEST (Neural Simulation Tool) and FreeSurfer.
Does The Virtual Brain have an API?
Yes. TVB includes a REST API that can be used individually from the web GUI. The API enables programmatic access to simulation capabilities, data management, and operations. Available through the tvb-library and tvb-framework packages published on PyPI, as well as Docker containers on DockerHub. Developer documentation is at docs.thevirtualbrain.org.
What industry is The Virtual Brain in?
The Virtual Brain's product category is Computational Neuroscience Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAGALAF, STEM & Lab Simulation Media (Virtual Labs, AR/VR), with a secondary code of EDAFANAD, Game-Based CS & Computational Thinking Platforms. Its NAICS code is 5417 and its SIC code is 7373.