Human Brain Project
The Human Brain Project (HBP) is the EU's 10-year, 607 million euro FET Flagship (2013-2023) that built EBRAINS, a digital research infrastructure serving academic, clinical, and industry researchers across 155 institutions in 19 countries with brain atlases, simulation engines, and neuromorphic computing platforms.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersGeneva, Switzerland
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Human Brain Project does
The Human Brain Project (HBP) was a ten-year European Future and Emerging Technologies (FET) Flagship initiative that ran from 2013 to 2023, coordinated through Forschungszentrum Jülich in Germany and operationally anchored at EBRAINS AISBL in Brussels. The initiative served academic researchers, clinical scientists, and industry researchers across 155 core partner institutions in 19 countries with a total European Commission budget of 607 million euros over four funding periods, drawing on more than 500 scientists, clinicians, and engineers. Its core product is EBRAINS, a digital research infrastructure that integrates brain data, multilevel brain atlases, simulation engines, neuromorphic computing platforms, neurorobotics, and high-performance computing access into a single environment for brain research and personalized brain medicine.
The platform architecture combines 160+ digital tools spanning simulation (The Virtual Brain for full-brain network modelling, NEST Simulator for spiking neural networks, Brain Scaffold Builder for multiscale model construction), neuromorphic hardware (SpiNNaker 1 million-core ARM system from Manchester/TU Dresden, BrainScaleS analog system), imaging and microscopy modalities (3D Polarised Light Imaging, FIB/SEM, Light-Sheet Fluorescence Microscopy), and clinical decision support (Virtual Epileptic Patient, deployed in 13 French hospitals for surgical planning). Education outreach — 5,500+ participants, 700 educational videos, 1,300+ expert trainers — underwrites pipeline replenishment, while 12 startups have spun out of the research portfolio.
The business model is grant-driven rather than commercially transactional: academic researchers receive open, free access to EBRAINS services, while industry researchers operate under specific agreements. Distribution occurs through 11 EBRAINS national nodes, Facility Hubs at partner universities (Amsterdam, Jülich, Pavia, Oslo, Aix-Marseille, UPM, Charité Berlin), and integrations with the Fenix HPC infrastructure and the European Open Science Cloud. Following the project's 2023 conclusion, EBRAINS is transitioning to a sustainable infrastructure through the EBRAINS 2.0 project (2024-2026) following its 2021 inclusion in the ESFRI Roadmap, with commercial IP being externalized via partners such as SpiNNcloud Systems.
Human Brain Project firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Human Brain Project
- Legal name
- Human Brain Project
- Website
- https://humanbrainproject.eu
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Closed
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- The Human Brain Project (HBP) is the EU's 10-year, 607 million euro FET Flagship (2013-2023) that built EBRAINS, a digital research infrastructure serving academic, clinical, and industry researchers across 155 institutions in 19 countries with brain atlases, simulation engines, and neuromorphic computing platforms.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Human Brain Project industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Neuroscience Research Infrastructure
- NAICS
- Scientific Research and Development Services (5417), Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (54171)
- SIC
- Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Real-World Data (RWD) / Real-World Evidence (RWE) & Observational Research Platforms (HLACAOAM)
Keywords
Where Human Brain Project is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Geneva
- HQ country
- Switzerland
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices3 records
Markets served
Human Brain Project business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- EU Research Funding: The HBP was funded by the European Union as a FET Flagship project with a total budget of 607 million euros over four funding periods from 2013 to 2023
- EBRAINS Infrastructure Access: Academic researchers have open access to EBRAINS state-of-the-art services; industry researchers use the platform under specific agreements
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels8 records
Human Brain Project product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Human Brain Project (HBP) was a 10-year European FET Flagship research initiative (2013–2023) that built EBRAINS, a digital research infrastructure integrating multilevel brain atlases, brain simulation tools, high-performance computing resources, and neuromorphic and neurorobotics platforms. The project produced 160+ digital tools, 92 filed patents, and trained thousands of researchers, and the EBRAINS infrastructure now continues as a sustainable platform serving the global neuroscience community.
Product overview
The Human Brain Project (HBP) was a 10-year European FET Flagship project (2013-2023) that pioneered digital neuroscience. Its core product is EBRAINS, a digital research infrastructure that integrates brain atlases, modelling and simulation tools, high-performance computing, and neuromorphic platforms. The portfolio includes over 160 digital tools spanning simulation platforms (The Virtual Brain, NEST Simulator), neuromorphic computing systems (SpiNNaker, BrainScaleS), medical analytics (Virtual Epileptic Patient), neurorobotics, and comprehensive education programmes. The HBP Education Programme offers online courses, workshops, and training events. Facility Hubs provide access to specialized equipment and expertise. The HBP developed the most comprehensive digital brain atlas to date and created personalized brain models for medical applications.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- EBRAINS: Digital research infrastructure created by the Human Brain Project, offering brain data sets, multilevel brain atlases, modelling and simulation tools, high-performance computing, and robotics and neuromorphic platforms for the neuroscience community.
Products and services
- EBRAINS Open digital research infrastructure created by the Human Brain Project, providing access to brain data sets, multilevel brain atlases, modelling and simulation tools, high-performance computing resources, and robotics and neuromorphic computing platforms for the neuroscience research community.
- Digital Brain Atlases Three-dimensional digital atlases of the human brain providing unprecedented detail by combining high-resolution data of neurons, fibre connections, receptors, and functional specialisations, available through EBRAINS.
- The Virtual Brain (TVB) Full brain network simulation engine that bridges computational models and human brain imaging data, providing tools for model building, simulation, analysis, validation, and model inversion to support clinical and neuroscience research.
- NEST Simulator Simulator for spiking neural network models focusing on the dynamics and structure of neural systems, supporting networks of any size including models of information processing, network activity dynamics, and learning and plasticity.
- Neuromorphic Computing Systems (SpiNNaker & BrainScaleS) Brain-inspired computing systems including SpiNNaker (1 million core ARM processor system) and BrainScaleS (physical analog neuromorphic system) accessible through EBRAINS for AI and neuroscience research applications.
- Neurorobotics Platform Service for embodied simulation enabling integration of brain models with robotic systems for closed-loop experiments in neurorobotics research.
- Medical Data Analytics (Virtual Epileptic Patient) Advanced analytics tools for clinical diagnosis and research, including the Virtual Epileptic Patient platform, which delivers personalised simulation models of brain dynamics to predict outcomes of surgical treatment strategies.
- Brain Simulations Workflows Integrated workflows for brain model creation, simulation, and validation spanning molecular, subcellular, cellular, network, and whole brain levels, accessible via EBRAINS.
- ANDA - Advanced NeuroData Management Research data management service for neuroscience researchers planning to share and publish data on the EBRAINS platform, adhering to FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) of open science.
- HBP Education Programme Comprehensive interdisciplinary educational initiative offering online courses, workshops, student conferences, and training events covering brain science, medicine, cognitive systems, and ICT for early career researchers.
- HBP Curriculum on Interdisciplinary Brain Science Web-based distance learning curriculum providing basic lessons in neuroscience, medicine, cognitive systems, and ICT for early career researchers, with the option to earn ECTS credits.
Quantifiable outcome
- Independent expert report confirmed HBP significantly advanced neuroscience with transformative impact
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Human Brain Project
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Human Brain Project technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability11 records
Feature12 records
Human Brain Project partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
18 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.
- Forschungszentrum Jülich (FZJ)coreWorld-leading brain research institute and Jülich Supercomputing Centre played a central role in the HBP. HBP Director Katrin Amunts is Director at FZJ's Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine. Hosted the concluding scientific symposium in September 2023.
- University of Amsterdam (UvA)coreHosts the 2-photon functional imaging Hub offering access to Leica fast resonant two-photon scanner and high-density ensemble recording setups using Neuropixels probes.
- University of PaviacoreHosts the Cerebellar Modelling Hub performing multiscale modelling using the Brain Scaffold Builder (BSB) workflow for neurons, microcircuits, and whole brains.
- Aix-Marseille UniversitycoreHosts The Virtual Brain (TVB) Hub and Facility providing field-specific expert support for brain network simulation, model building, and clinical applications.
- University of OslocoreHosts the ANDA (Advanced NeuroData management) Hub providing research data management services for sharing neuroscience data following FAIR principles on EBRAINS.
- Charité BerlincoreHosts the Virtual Brain Cloud Hub offering brain simulation as a service on EBRAINS including TVB network simulator, MRI processing pipelines, and multiscale co-simulation.
- École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) - Blue Brain ProjectcoreCollaborated on the Hippocampus Hub providing reference models of neurons, synapses and hippocampal microcircuits for in silico experiments.
- Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) and Karolinska InstitutecoreCo-host the Basal Ganglia Modeling Center in Stockholm facilitating modelling and simulations using data-driven approaches at multiple scales.
- Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM)coreHosts the FIB/SEM Hub at Centro de Tecnología Biomédica for synapse studies and high-resolution brain imaging. Also led HBP Innovation team.
- European Laboratory for Non-Linear Spectroscopy (LENS)coreHosts the Light-Sheet Fluorescence Microscopy Hub offering whole brain imaging at cellular resolution using custom optical setups.
- University of ManchestercoreDeveloped SpiNNaker2 neuromorphic computer (1 million core ARM processor system) in collaboration with TU Dresden.
- TU DresdencoreCollaborated on development of SpiNNaker2 neuromorphic computing system with University of Manchester.
- SpiNNcloud SystemsmajorCompany in Dresden commercializing the SpiNNaker neuromorphic computing approach for AI applications.
- Forschungszentrum Jülich - NEST Facility HubcoreOperates the NEST Facility Hub providing the NEST simulator for spiking neural network models via Jupyter notebooks on EBRAINS with HPC connection.
- European Institute for Theoretical Neuroscience (EITN)coreCompetence centre providing specialized software support as part of the Facility Hubs network.
- Fenix Research InfrastructurecoreSupercomputing network integrated with EBRAINS providing user access to computing resources for data storage, analysis, and simulation.
- European Open Science Cloud (EOSC)majorCollaborated through the Virtual Brain Cloud project under EOSC for brain simulation as a cloud service.
- European Clinical Research Infrastructure NetworkminorAffiliation mentioned in context of Lead Scientist Roshan Cools' research on dopamine prediction models.
Scale indicators16 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Human Brain Project competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Simons Foundation / Flatiron Institute: Funder and operator of major neuroscience research programs (e.g., Simons Collaboration on the Global Brain) producing brain atlases and computational neuroscience. Comparable scale of private-philanthropy neuroscience programs.
- Janelia Research Campus (HHMI): Major neuroscience research campus running large-scale brain mapping, imaging, and tool development programs. Comparable in scope (imaging, connectomics, computational neuroscience) and scientific ambition to the HBP.
- NIH BRAIN Initiative: US federal brain research program with multi-billion-dollar funding, atlas goals, and tool-development mandate. Comparable in scale and mission to HBP, but US-led.
- Kavli Foundation / Kavli Institutes: Funds global network of Kavli Institutes focused on neuroscience, including computational and systems neuroscience. Comparable in mission across the neuroscience value chain.
Others
- EGI Federation: Federation providing computing and data infrastructure to European research communities. Comparable as the HPC/compute substrate layer that complements EBRAINS' higher-level brain-research tooling.
- European Open Science Cloud (EOSC): Europe-wide federated environment for research data and services. Aligned ecosystem counterpart to EBRAINS for FAIR data sharing and reuse across disciplines.
Direct peers
- ELIXIR: European life-science data infrastructure coordinating bioinformatics resources across member states. Operates an analogous FAIR-data, ESFRI-style distributed infrastructure model with which EBRAINS interoperates.
- Allen Institute for Brain Science: US non-profit building comprehensive brain atlases (Allen Brain Atlas) and open neuroscience data resources. Direct peer to EBRAINS in mission, atlas approach, and open-access distribution model.
- SpiNNcloud Systems: Company commercializing the SpiNNaker neuromorphic computing architecture developed with HBP partners (Manchester, TU Dresden). Direct peer translating HBP-adjacent IP into commercial neuromorphic hardware.
- Blue Brain Project (EPFL): EPFL-led brain simulation project that collaborated with HBP and built neuron/circuit-level digital reconstructions. Closely overlaps HBP's modelling and simulation focus and shares scientific lineage.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Human Brain Project social profiles
Digital presenceHuman Brain Project financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Human Brain Project leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Human Brain Project subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries2 records
Human Brain Project funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
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Human Brain Project M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
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Frequently asked questions about Human Brain Project
What does Human Brain Project do?
The Human Brain Project (HBP) was a 10-year European FET Flagship research initiative (2013–2023) that built EBRAINS, a digital research infrastructure integrating multilevel brain atlases, brain simulation tools, high-performance computing resources, and neuromorphic and neurorobotics platforms. The project produced 160+ digital tools, 92 filed patents, and trained thousands of researchers, and the EBRAINS infrastructure now continues as a sustainable platform serving the global neuroscience community.
Is Human Brain Project a public or private company?
Human Brain Project is a private company. It is classified as state government owned and is currently closed.
When was Human Brain Project founded?
Human Brain Project was founded in 2013. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Human Brain Project based?
Human Brain Project is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, in the Europe region.
How does Human Brain Project make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. EU Research Funding is the primary driver. The others are EBRAINS Infrastructure Access.
Who are Human Brain Project's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Simons Foundation / Flatiron Institute, Janelia Research Campus (HHMI), NIH BRAIN Initiative and Kavli Foundation / Kavli Institutes. Others are EGI Federation and European Open Science Cloud (EOSC). Direct peers are ELIXIR, Allen Institute for Brain Science, SpiNNcloud Systems and Blue Brain Project (EPFL).
Does Human Brain Project have an API?
No public API is recorded for Human Brain Project.
What industry is Human Brain Project in?
Human Brain Project's product category is Neuroscience Research Infrastructure. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLACAOAM, Real-World Data (RWD) / Real-World Evidence (RWE) & Observational Research Platforms. Its NAICS code is 5417 and its SIC code is 8731.