Prof. Vladimir Spokoiny is a leading figure in stochastic algorithms and nonparametric statistics at the Weierstrass Institute for Applied Analysis and Stochastics (WIAS) and Humboldt University of Berlin . His work bridges mathematical statistics with practical applications in finance, medicine, and machine learning. Born in 1959 in Moscow, USSR PhD from Lomonosov Moscow State University (1988) Habilitation from Humboldt University (1996) Head of WIAS research group since 2000 Professor at Humboldt University since 2002 Spokoiny's research focuses on adaptive nonparametric methods, high-dimensional data analysis, and statistical finance. His innovations in local homogeneity testing and propagation-separation methods have advanced volatility modeling, image analysis, and manifold learning. He employs Bayesian optimization frameworks and stochastic control techniques for financial instrument pricing. Recent scientific contributions include generalized bootstrap procedures for Bures-Wasserstein barycenters (2024), dimension-free Laplace approximation bounds (2023), and structure-adaptive manifold estimation (2022). His 19+ PhD students and editorial roles in top journals like The Annals of Statistics demonstrate sustained academic impact. International Statistical Institute member American Statistical Association fellow Institute of Mathematical Statistics member Bernoulli Society member
Nada Sissouno is a Professor of Mathematics and Didactics of Mathematics at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Media and Informatics at Amberg-Weiden University of Applied Sciences since November 2023. She also serves as Vice Dean and Co-head of the Competence Center Grundlagen (CCG). Additionally, she maintains a position as a guest researcher at the Research Group: Applied and Numerical Analysis and Optimization and Data Analysis at the Technical University of Munich (TUM). Her educational background includes a Doctorate in Mathematics (Dr. rer. nat.) from TU Darmstadt (2007-2011) and a Diplom in Mathematics with a minor in psychology from TU Darmstadt (2000-2007). She has completed further education as a Diversity Manager in 2021 and holds certificates in teaching in higher education from the Bavarian Universities (2014-2016). Professor Sissouno's research focuses on mathematical methods in signal and image processing, data science, dynamical systems, numerical simulation, and approximation theory. Her work particularly emphasizes spline functions on domains, wavelets and frames, and evidence-based development of teaching methodologies. Her recent publications demonstrate strong expertise in mathematical imaging, phase retrieval problems, and approximation theory, with applications spanning ptychographic imaging, variational inpainting methods, and structural sparsity in multiple measurements. Her collaborative research bridges theoretical mathematics with practical applications in signal processing and image analysis, with a particular focus on developing robust numerical algorithms for complex data analysis problems. She has published in prestigious journals including Advances in Computational Mathematics, Journal of Fourier Analysis and Applications, IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing, and Inverse Problems. Referentin für Talentmanagement & Diversity at TUM (2022-2023) Deputy spokesperson of Research Associates' Council of the TUM (2019-2023) Gender equality officer of Department of Mathematics (2019-2022) Professor Sissouno teaches mathematics courses for engineering and computer science students, with a focus on making mathematical concepts accessible and relevant to practical applications. She has been involved in teacher training and the evidence-based development of teaching methodologies, demonstrating her commitment to both research excellence and educational innovation.
Ralf Hielscher is a Professor at the Institute of Applied Analysis within the Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science at the Technical University of Freiberg, Germany. His research lies at the intersection of applied mathematics, materials science, and imaging, with a strong focus on crystallographic texture analysis and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD). He is a core developer and leading figure behind MTEX, a widely used open-source MATLAB toolbox for texture and orientation data analysis. Research Interests: His work centers on mathematical methods for analyzing crystallographic orientations, including spherical harmonic transforms, kernel density estimation on rotation groups, manifold-valued data processing, and inverse problems in tomography and texture reconstruction. He develops algorithms for parent grain reconstruction, orientation mapping, denoising, and visualization of microstructures. The recent publications reveal a consistent trend in advancing computational techniques for EBSD and texture analysis, particularly through the MTEX platform. His work bridges theoretical mathematics with practical materials characterization, enabling more accurate and efficient analysis of polycrystalline materials across geology, metallurgy, and engineering. Email: ralf.hielscher@math.tu-freiberg.de Scientific Contributions: While no formal awards are listed, his extensive publication record in high-impact journals such as SIAM Journal on Imaging Sciences , Journal of Applied Crystallography , and Inverse Problems underscores his significant contributions to the field. He has developed foundational algorithms now embedded in MTEX, which is used globally by researchers in materials science and geology. Teaching and Advising: He teaches courses such as Function Theory, Analysis 3, and Mathematics for Engineers. Although specific students are not mentioned, his leadership in MTEX and numerous collaborative publications suggest he mentors researchers and contributes to training the next generation of scientists in computational materials analysis. Labs and Teams: He is part of the team at the Institute of Applied Analysis and leads research efforts related to signal and image processing in crystallography. The MTEX project serves as a virtual research platform involving international collaborators in Germany, France, the UK, and beyond, facilitating open science in texture analysis.
Jan Lellmann is a Professor at the Institute of Mathematics and Image Computing of the University of Lübeck, with affiliations to Fraunhofer MEVIS . His research focuses on variational image processing , emphasizing the systematic formulation of prior knowledge into energy functions for improved accuracy and data efficiency. Applications span medical imaging , earth sciences , and biological data analysis . He develops non-smooth optimization methods for problems with combinatorial aspects like image segmentation . His recent work includes manifold-constrained optimization and quantum algorithms for imaging tasks. He has contributed software libraries like MFOPT (for manifold optimization) and COAL (for convex energy minimization). Scientific Awards: Best Student Paper Award at SSVM 2021 Honorable Mention at CVPR 2016 Recent Research Trends: Integration of quantum computing with classical image registration. Advancements in Riemannian geometry for protein dynamics and cryo-EM. Development of meta-learning frameworks for adaptive image alignment. Focus on non-smooth and higher-order regularization for sparse data reconstruction.
Dr. Christoph von Tycowicz serves as Head of the Research Group "Geometric Data Analysis and Processing" at the Zuse Institute Berlin (ZIB), within the "Visual and data-centric computing" department of the "Mathematics of Complex Systems" division. His research bridges advanced mathematical theory with practical applications in medical imaging, biomechanics, and cultural heritage analysis. He leads multiple interdisciplinary projects connecting mathematics, computer science, and biomedical engineering, with funding from major research initiatives. Dr. von Tycowicz earned his doctoral degree from Freie Universität Berlin in 2014 with a dissertation titled "Concepts and Algorithms for the Deformation, Analysis, and Compression of Digital Shapes" under the supervision of Konrad Polthier. His educational background established the foundation for his current work in geometric data analysis and computational shape modeling. His primary research interests center on Geometric Data Analysis , Shape Analysis , and Manifold-valued Data Processing . He develops mathematical frameworks for analyzing complex shapes in medical imaging, biomechanics, and cultural heritage applications. His work bridges differential geometry with machine learning to create robust methods for shape comparison, classification, and prediction. Dr. von Tycowicz has made significant contributions to Riemannian statistical shape modeling and geometric deep learning, with applications spanning knee osteoarthritis assessment, Alzheimer's disease progression analysis, and archaeological artifact analysis. Analysis of his publication trajectory reveals a sophisticated evolution from foundational geometric methods toward integrated approaches combining differential geometry with deep learning. His recent work increasingly focuses on manifold-valued graph neural networks, shape-based disease grading systems, and longitudinal analysis of anatomical changes. There's a clear trend toward clinical translation, with growing emphasis on applying these methods to specific medical problems like osteoarthritis assessment using data from the Osteoarthritis Initiative and Alzheimer's disease progression modeling. Dr. von Tycowicz has received significant recognition for his contributions: Best Paper Honorable Mention Award @ Eurographics (2016) Best Paper Award (2020) Student Travel Award (2020) Special Mention @ ICLR Computational Geometry & Topology Challenge (2022) As a mentor, Dr. von Tycowicz has supervised doctoral and master's students including Felix Ambellan (doctoral thesis on Efficient Riemannian Statistical Shape Analysis with Applications in Disease Assessment) and Martha Paskin (master's thesis on Estimating 3D Shape of the Head Skeleton of Basking Sharks). He currently leads multiple substantial research projects including WEAR (mathematical solutions for analyzing ancient tools), Model-Regularized Learning of Complex Dynamical Behavior, and Geometric Learning for Single-Cell RNA Velocity Modeling, demonstrating strong grant acquisition capabilities across interdisciplinary domains. The Geometric Data Analysis and Processing research group, which Dr. von Tycowicz heads, develops the open-source Morphomatics library (v4.0) for statistical shape analysis. This Python library implements intrinsic manifold-based methods that maintain geometric consistency while avoiding bias from arbitrary coordinate choices. The group participates in major research networks including MATH+ and BIFOLD, and collaborates extensively with medical researchers at Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin and other institutions. Their work spans medical imaging (particularly knee osteoarthritis analysis), biomechanics, archaeology, and machine learning, with a unifying focus on creating geometrically principled methods for analyzing complex shape data.
Ronny Bergmann is an Associate Professor (Førsteamanuensis) at the Department of Mathematical Sciences at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim, Norway, where he has been employed since March 2021. Previously, he served as a postdoctoral researcher and deputy head of the Numerical Analysis of Partial Differential Equations group at Chemnitz University of Technology, Germany, and earlier worked within the Image Processing Group at Kaiserslautern University of Technology where he completed his habilitation in early 2018. His doctoral research was conducted at the University of Lübeck under supervision of Jürgen Prestin. Bergmann's research primarily focuses on nonsmooth optimization on manifolds , with particular emphasis on proximal methods and their applications in manifold-valued image processing. His work extends to optimization methods on manifolds and high-dimensional power manifolds, graph-based approaches for manifold-valued data processing that combine local and nonlocal methods, and anisotropic periodic translation invariant spaces with Fourier-based algorithms. His research bridges theoretical mathematics with practical computational applications in image processing and data analysis. His recent publications demonstrate significant contributions to manifold optimization theory and applications, with a strong emphasis on developing computationally efficient algorithms for manifold-valued data. The publications span topics including Riemannian proximal gradient methods, Newton's methods on manifolds, total variation techniques for mesh processing, and geometric approaches to Kalman filtering. His work often involves developing practical implementations, such as the Manopt.jl and Manifolds.jl packages in Julia, which have demonstrated substantial performance improvements over existing tools. Bergmann's research has been published in top-tier journals including SIAM Journal on Scientific Computing, Journal of Optimization Theory and Applications, and SIAM Journal on Optimization, reflecting the high quality and impact of his contributions to the field of manifold optimization and its applications. As both a theoretical mathematician and computational scientist, Bergmann has made significant contributions to advancing the state-of-the-art in optimization on manifolds, particularly in developing methods that maintain intrinsic geometric properties while achieving computational efficiency. His work has applications across multiple domains including image processing, computer graphics, robotics, and data science.
Daniel Tenbrinck is an Academic Councilor and Acting Professor (W3) at the Department of Data Science, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg). His career spans roles at the University of Münster, ENSICAEN (France), and FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg. He holds a PhD in Computer Science (2013) from WWU Münster. Research Focus: Data Science, Machine Learning, Biomedical Imaging, Variational Methods, Graph Theory, and Numerical Analysis. Recent Publications: Explore hypergraph p-Laplacians, Fourier neural operators for image classification, and Bregman learning frameworks for sparse networks. Awards: Received the 2022 Teaching Award from FAU's Faculty of Natural Sciences and a 2021 performance bonus for outstanding contributions. Secured significant third-party funding, including a €1.98M BMBF grant for "COMFORT" (2024) and a €915k Bavarian Digitalization grant (2023). Teaching: Offers courses in Numerics, Mathematical Image Processing, Inverse Problems, and Data Science seminars. Actively involved in academic program development through grants like the 2023 Innovation Fund for Teaching.
Ronny Bergmann is an Associate Professor at the Department of Mathematical Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) since March 2021. Previously, he held research positions at TU Chemnitz (2018–2021) and TU Kaiserslautern (2013–2018), where he completed his habilitation in 2018. He earned his PhD in 2013 from Universität zu Lübeck under the supervision of Jürgen Prestin. His research focuses on numerical optimization on Riemannian manifolds, geometric computing, and manifold-valued data analysis. Key contributions include the development of the Manifolds.jl and Manopt.jl packages in Julia, which provide frameworks for optimization and data analysis on manifolds. He also works on applications in imaging, inverse problems, and geometric inverse methods. Recent work emphasizes non-smooth optimization on manifolds, Fenchel duality in non-Euclidean spaces, and geometric algorithms for shape analysis. His publications span journals like SIAM Journal on Scientific Computing , Journal of Optimization Theory and Applications , and Applied and Computational Harmonic Analysis . Bergmann teaches courses such as TMA4125 Mathematics 4N and actively promotes reproducible research through tools like Quarto. He collaborates on projects involving Lie groups, mesh denoising, and geometric deep learning.
Robert Beinert is a Senior Lecturer (Privatdozent) in Applied Mathematics at the Technische Universität Berlin, affiliated with the Department of Applied Mathematics within the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences. He holds a Dr. rer. nat. (Ph.D.) from Georg-August-Universität Göttingen (2015) and completed his Habilitation at Technische Universität Berlin in 2025. His research focuses on inverse problems, optimal transport, phase retrieval, and mathematical imaging, with applications in signal processing and data analysis. He has held academic positions including Research Associate roles at TU Berlin (2020–2025), Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz (2016–2020), and Georg-August-Universität Göttingen (2016). His work bridges theoretical foundations and practical applications, with contributions to regularization techniques, optimal transport theory, and algorithmic development. Key research interests include phase retrieval uniqueness analysis, Gromov-Wasserstein transport, and denoising methodologies for manifold-valued data. His recent publications emphasize advancements in optimal transport frameworks, regularization strategies, and applications in image processing and machine learning.
Prof. Dr. Benedikt Wirth is a Professor of Mathematics at the University of Münster, Germany, affiliated with the Institute for Analysis and Numerics within the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science. He is an active researcher and educator specializing in optimization and calculus of variations, with significant contributions to mathematical imaging and shape analysis. His research interests include image processing, scientific computing, numerical analysis, optimization, shape spaces, geodesics in shape space, variational methods, elastic deformation, and optimal transport. Wirth has developed innovative mathematical frameworks for shape analysis, particularly focusing on Riemannian metrics for shape spaces and variational approaches to shape comparison and optimization. His recent publications (2023-2025) demonstrate continued leadership in mathematical optimization, with particular focus on PET reconstruction, dimension reduction techniques, manifold embeddings, and branched transport theory. His work bridges theoretical mathematics with practical applications in medical imaging and computer vision, showing particular strength in connecting geometric analysis with computational methods. CRC 1450 - A05: Targeting immune cell dynamics by longitudinal whole-body imaging and mathematical modelling CRC 1450 - A06: Improving intravital microscopy of inflammatory cell response by active motion compensation EXC 2044 - C1: Evolution and asymptotics EXC 2044 - C2: Multi-scale phenomena and macroscopic structures EXC 2044 - C3: Interacting particle systems and phase transitions EXC 2044 - C4: Geometry-based modelling, approximation, and reduction Prof. Wirth actively supervises numerous bachelor's and master's students, with over 40 theses completed under his guidance since 2015. His teaching portfolio includes courses on inverse problems, numerical methods for partial differential equations, shape spaces, optimization, and optimal transport. He has consistently maintained an active research program while contributing significantly to the education of the next generation of mathematicians.
