Alexander Shaw

Dr. Alexander Shaw is a Senior Lecturer and neuroscientist at the University of Exeter's School of Psychology, conducting interdisciplinary research at the intersection of neuroscience, psychiatry, applied mathematics, and artificial intelligence. He leads a research group integrating experimental neuroimaging (M/EEG, MRI, PET) with computational modeling to study psychiatric disorders and develop brain-inspired AI systems.

• Director of Business Engagement and Innovation, Psychology Department
• MRI Liaison
• Personal Tutor for UG/PGT students
• Supervisor for UG, PGT, and PGR researchers

His computational work focuses on predictive coding, active inference, and free energy minimization as frameworks for understanding brain computation and mental disorders. The lab develops neurophysiologically grounded generative models using dynamical systems theory, Bayesian inference, and machine learning to estimate synaptic parameters from neuroimaging data.

Recent publications highlight his dual focus on neuroimaging and machine learning applications in psychiatry. Collaborations span institutions like GABA Labs, Cardiff University, and Imperial College London, with funded projects on neurocomputational psychiatry and psychedelic pharmacodynamics.

Lab members include Research Associate Lio Berndt and PhD students Alessia Caccamo, Rosina Diebel, Joy Krecke, Victoria Smart, Zhihao Deng, and Olivia Hill-Cousins. Research is supported by Wellcome Trust and EPSRC funding.

Key methodological contributions include SourceMesh, a MATLAB-based tool for 3D neuroimaging visualization and connectome analysis, with applications in GABA receptor mapping and thalamocortical modeling.