Professor Maja Pantic is a Professor of Affective & Behavioural Computing at the Department of Computing, Faculty of Engineering, Imperial College London. Her research focuses on artificial intelligence, image processing, and audio-visual speech recognition. She leads projects in multimodal systems, including facial analysis, emotion recognition, and speech-driven animation. Affiliations include the AI for Healthcare initiative, the Artificial Intelligence Network, and the Machine Learning Network. Her work addresses challenges in real-time speech enhancement, cross-modal learning, and synthetic data generation. Recent publications emphasize advancements in audiovisual speech synthesis, lip-reading, and emotion-aware systems. She has contributed to datasets like KAN-AV and SEWA DB, advancing research in face analysis and affective computing.
Dr. Pradip Sharma is an Associate Professor of Cybersecurity & AI at the University of Aberdeen, UK, within the School of Natural and Computing Sciences, Department of Computing Science. He is a globally recognized academic and researcher with expertise in Cybersecurity, Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain, and Edge Computing. His research interests span multiple domains including Cybersecurity, Blockchain, Edge Computing, Software-defined Networking, and IoT Security. Dr. Sharma's work focuses on developing innovative solutions for security challenges in emerging technologies, with particular emphasis on privacy-aware AI systems, secure data sharing frameworks, and intelligent network security mechanisms. His interdisciplinary approach bridges theoretical foundations with practical implementations across healthcare, smart mobility, and consumer electronics domains. Senior Fellowship Advance HE (SFHEA) IEEE Senior Member (SMIEEE) Dr. Sharma actively supervises doctoral researchers and is accepting new PhD students in Computing Science. His funded research portfolio exceeds £1M from sources including EPSRC, Innovate UK, and international agencies. Current projects include 'Secure, Privacy-aware, and Trusted Data Share in Smart Mobility' (EPSRC, £200K), 'ZECURE Data Exchange Platform' (Innovate UK, £236K), and 'Quantum-resistant Cybersecurity' (Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia, £73K). He also serves as an editor for leading journals and is a regular keynote speaker at international conferences.
Dr. Edward Johns is an Associate Professor in the Department of Computing at Imperial College London and Director of the Robot Learning Lab. He specializes in robot learning, focusing on enabling robots to learn tasks through imitation and language-based reasoning. His expertise spans robotics, machine learning, and computer vision, with a particular emphasis on manipulation tasks requiring physical interaction with objects. He holds a BA and MEng from the University of Cambridge and a PhD from Imperial College London. Prior to his current role, he was a postdoc at UCL, a founding member of the Dyson Robotics Lab, and led the robot manipulation team there. He also served as Head of Robot Learning at Dyson (part-time, 2021–2022). His research has produced state-of-the-art capabilities such as one-shot imitation learning and language-driven task execution. Key areas of interest include sim-to-real transfer, self-supervised learning, and adaptive robotic systems. His work bridges foundational AI research with practical robotics applications, emphasizing real-world deployment and human-robot collaboration. Dr. Johns has published over 60 peer-reviewed papers, with over 4,000 citations, and has received prestigious awards including the UK-RAS Early Career Award (2023) and the Best Conference Paper Award at ICRA (2024). He is also actively involved in industry through advisory roles for robotics and AI startups. His teaching includes graduate courses on reinforcement learning and robot learning, and he collaborates extensively with labs such as the Robotics Forum and the Artificial Intelligence Network at Imperial College.
Dr. Arno Onken is a Lecturer (Assistant Professor) in Data Science for Life Sciences at the School of Informatics, University of Edinburgh, where he is also affiliated with the Institute for Adaptive and Neural Computation. He leads a research group focused on developing machine learning and statistical methods for modeling neural activity and analyzing large-scale neuroscience data. His work bridges artificial intelligence and computational neuroscience. His research interests lie at the intersection of machine learning, statistics, and neuroscience. He develops flexible probabilistic models such as copulas and Gaussian processes, deep learning architectures like Vision Transformers for brain activity prediction, and matrix/tensor factorization techniques for dimensionality reduction in neural datasets. His group aims to uncover interpretable structure in complex neural recordings and understand how behavior and cognition are encoded in population activity. The recent publications reflect a strong trend in combining modern deep learning with classical statistical modeling to analyze large-scale neural recordings. His work spans from foundational methods in copula modeling and information theory to applications in predicting visual cortex responses and modeling brainstem-hippocampus interactions across sleep states. The research has been published in top venues including NeurIPS, CVPR, eLife, and PLoS Computational Biology. Dr. Onken actively supervises PhD students and has developed several open-source scientific software packages, including the Mixed Vine Toolbox and Population Spike Train Factorization Toolbox. He teaches core courses in Machine Learning and Pattern Recognition and Data Mining and Exploration at the University of Edinburgh.
Professor Adrian Hilton is a distinguished faculty member at the University of Surrey, serving as Director of the Centre for Vision, Speech and Signal Processing (CVSSP) and Director of the Surrey Institute for People-Centred AI. He is affiliated with the School of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering and leads the Visual Media Research Lab (V-Lab). His research focuses on pioneering next-generation 4D computer vision technologies that enable machines to understand and model dynamic real-world scenes. Key areas include 3D/4D shape capture, computer vision, machine learning, graphics, and animation for applications in sports analysis, film/TV production, virtual reality, and medical imaging. His work bridges the gap between real and computer-generated imagery, with notable contributions in volumetric capture, motion capture, and free-viewpoint video. Hilton's recent publications demonstrate a strong trend toward multimodal integration, particularly combining audio and visual processing for spatial audio applications, while advancing 4D reconstruction techniques for human performance capture. His work increasingly incorporates transformer architectures and neural rendering techniques for improved illumination estimation, shadow modeling, and multi-view consistency. Scientific Awards and Recognition Two EU IST Innovation Prizes Manufacturing Industry Achievement Award Royal Society Industry Fellowship (2008-2011) Royal Society Wolfson Research Merit Award in 4D Vision (2013-2018) Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering (FREng) Fellow of the International Association for Pattern Recognition (FIAPR) Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (FIET) Hilton actively mentors PhD and post-doctoral researchers through his leadership of CVSSP, which has a grant portfolio exceeding £31M and comprises 170 researchers. He has successfully commercialized several technologies, including systems used by the BBC for sports commentary visualization. His research collaborations span major industry partners including BBC, BT, Sony, Framestore, and The Foundry. He co-founded the G3 Games forum and the CVMP Conference on Visual Media Production, demonstrating strong engagement with the creative industries. Current research projects include the S3A Programme Grant in Future Spatial Audio and InnovateUK's ALIVE project for 360 video reconstruction.
Dr. Armin Mustafa is an Associate Professor in Computer Vision and AI at the University of Surrey, where he holds a prestigious Royal Academy of Engineering Research Fellow position. He is affiliated with the Centre for Vision, Speech and Signal Processing (CVSSP), the School of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering, and the Surrey Institute for People-Centred Artificial Intelligence (PAI). His research focuses on developing AI systems for visual understanding of complex dynamic scenes, with applications in entertainment, autonomous systems, and augmented/virtual reality. Dr. Mustafa completed his PhD in general dynamic scene reconstruction from multi-view videos in 2016 from the University of Surrey under the supervision of Prof. Adrian Hilton. Prior to his doctoral studies, he worked for three years (2010-2013) at Samsung Research Institute in Bangalore, India, in the field of Computer Vision. His research expertise spans Computer Vision, Scene Understanding, 3D/4D Vision, Virtual Reality, Light Fields, Machine Learning, Video Captioning, Augmented Reality, Artificial Intelligence, and Audio-visual Video Understanding. Dr. Mustafa has pioneered advances in 4D vision, NLP, and Scene Understanding over the past decade, with a particular focus on enabling machines to model and interpret real-world environments for socially beneficial applications. His work bridges theoretical advances in computer vision with practical applications in media production, virtual reality, and autonomous systems. Analysis of Dr. Mustafa's recent publications reveals a strong focus on multimodal learning, particularly the integration of audio and visual information for scene understanding. His work spans diverse areas including shadow detection and removal, audio event classification, video captioning, person image generation, and dynamic scene reconstruction. A notable trend is his exploration of transformer architectures for both vision and audio tasks, as well as the application of self-supervised learning techniques to reduce dependency on labeled data. Dr. Mustafa has received numerous prestigious awards: 2018 - Research Fellowship, The Royal Academy of Engineering, UK 2017 - Young Researcher award, CVPR 2016 - Doctoral Consortium grant, CVPR 2015 - BMVA travel grant for ICCV 2014 - Set-Squared Research to Innovator grant 2013 - Overseas Research Scholarship, FEPS, The University of Surrey 2010 - Cadence Silver Medal, Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur As a dedicated mentor, Dr. Mustafa supervises several PhD students working on cutting-edge topics including multi-person reconstruction, audio-visual scene understanding, and automatic storyboard generation. His research is supported by significant grants including a £15 million UKRI Prosperity Partnership with the BBC (AI4ME), a 5-year Royal Academy of Engineering fellowship (4D Vision for Perceptive Machines), and multiple projects with industry partners such as Figment Productions and Foundry. Dr. Mustafa is an active member of the Centre for Vision, Speech and Signal Processing (CVSSP), one of the world's leading research centers in vision, speech, and signal processing. He also contributes to the Surrey Institute for People-Centred Artificial Intelligence (PAI), where he serves as a Surrey AI Fellow. His work often involves collaboration with industry partners and other academic institutions across Europe.
Fouad Khelifi is an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer and Information Sciences at Northumbria University. His research focuses on computer vision, machine learning, image/video processing, biometrics, multimedia forensics, and medical image analysis. He obtained his PhD in Computing Science from Queen's University Belfast (2007) and held prior research roles at the University of Bradford (2007–2009) before joining Northumbria in 2010. He supervises PhD students in cybersecurity applications and palm-vein recognition systems. Education: PhD in Computing Science, Queen's University Belfast (2004–2007) Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA, 2014) Research Interests: Khelifi’s work spans advanced deep learning techniques for medical imaging (e.g., cancer detection, retinal disease analysis), source camera identification in digital forensics, and biometric authentication systems. He develops novel algorithms for feature extraction, fusion networks, and transformer-based models in healthcare and multimedia security. Advising: Supervising Egallekanda Perera (PhD, 2019–2025): Efficient Keypoint-based Palm-vein Recognition Co-supervising Ikechukwu Ikpeama (PhD, 2024–): Cybersecurity for Industrial Control Systems Labs/Teams: Active in Northumbria’s Digital Media and Systems Research groups, contributing to interdisciplinary projects in AI-driven medical imaging and multimedia forensics.
Min Chen is a Professor of Scientific Visualization at the University of Oxford, affiliated with the Department of Engineering Science and Pembroke College. He holds fellowships from the British Computer Society, European Computer Graphics Association, and Learned Society of Wales. His career spans over three decades, with previous roles at Swansea University (1984–2011) and current leadership in visualization research. His research focuses on visualization theory, video visualization, visual analytics, and interdisciplinary applications in fields like epidemiology and cybersecurity. He has authored over 200 publications and led projects such as RAMPVIS during the COVID-19 pandemic. Key roles include editor-in-chief of Computer Graphics Forum and associate editor of IEEE Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics. Education: BSc and PhD in relevant fields (details not explicitly stated in texts). Awards include the VGTC Visualization Lifetime Achievement Award (2024). His work emphasizes the theoretical underpinnings of visualization and practical tools for data intelligence.
Dr. Lily Meng is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Hertfordshire's School of Physics, Engineering & Computer Science. With over 15 years of academic work, she specializes in Machine Learning, Computer Vision, and Biometrics, focusing on face recognition systems and privacy-preserving technologies. Her research bridges theoretical innovation with real-world applications. Ph.D. in Pattern Recognition (University of Liverpool, 2002) M.Sc. in Microelectronic Systems & Telecommunications (University of Liverpool, 1998) Her research interests span: Face recognition algorithms for security control Real-time face de-identification in multimedia Conditional GANs for privacy-preserving image synthesis Biometric data governance and ethical AI Standardization of multimedia coding European COST Action IC1206 leadership Key article trends include computer vision, privacy technology, and biomedical applications. Notable awards: Best Research Guidance (2018) She leads the Networks and Security Research Centre and participates in industry collaborations including Santander UK and European COST networks.
Dr. Stamos Katsigiannis is an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science at Durham University. His research focuses on bioinformatics, health informatics, affective computing, machine learning, and GPU computing applications. He holds a PhD in Computer Science from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (Greece), with prior roles including Postdoctoral Research Fellow and Lecturer at the University of the West of Scotland (2016-2020). Education: BSc (Hons) Informatics and Telecommunications, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (Greece) MSc Computer Science, Athens University of Economics and Business (Greece) PhD Computer Science, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (Greece) Research Interests: Bioinformatics, health informatics, affective computing (e.g., emotion recognition using EEG/ECG signals), machine learning applications in medical imaging and video quality, GPU-accelerated algorithms for biomedical data analysis, and biometric identification systems. His work bridges computational methods with healthcare, education technologies, and human-computer interaction. Advising & Students: Supervising postgraduate students in AI-driven healthcare, computer vision, and affective computing. Recent collaborations include projects on AI-generated content detection (De-Factify 4.0), chest X-ray image analysis (CLN network), and trajectory prediction using graph neural networks. Labs/Teams: Active in Durham's AI research groups, contributing to interdisciplinary projects in medical imaging, cybersecurity, and educational technology. Collaborates internationally in EU-funded initiatives and UK parliamentary AI governance consultations (AGENCY project).
Dr. Ammar Belatreche is a Senior Lecturer in Computer Science and Programme Leader for the MSc Advanced Computer Science at Northumbria University's Department of Computer and Information Sciences. He joined Northumbria University in May 2016 after previous positions as a Research Associate and Lecturer at Ulster University. He is an active member of the Computational Intelligence and Visual Computing (CIVC) research group. Dr. Belatreche earned his PhD in Computer Science from Ulster University in 2007. His professional qualifications include: Member of the Association of Computing Machinery (ACM) since 2012 Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA) since 2010 Member of the Institute of Electrical & Electronic Engineers (IEEE) since 2009 His research focuses on bio-inspired intelligent systems, machine learning, spiking neural networks, face detection and recognition, structured and unstructured data analytics, capital markets engineering, and image processing. Dr. Belatreche has extensive experience across academic and R&D in these areas, leading numerous research and consultancy projects. His recent work demonstrates a strong emphasis on neuromorphic computing, particularly spiking neural networks and their applications in computer vision, financial analysis, and biometrics. Analysis of his recent publications shows a clear trend toward advancing spiking neural network architectures, with particular focus on quantization, pruning, and binary implementations to improve efficiency. His research spans multiple domains including computer vision (face recognition, palm-vein recognition), financial technology (stock price manipulation detection), and neuromorphic engineering. Many of his recent papers (2024-2025) appear in top-tier conferences like ICLR and journals like IEEE Transactions on Neural Networks and Learning Systems. Dr. Belatreche has received professional recognition including: Fellowship with the Higher Education Academy (FHEA) Role as Associate Editor for the journal Neurocomputing He has successfully supervised or co-supervised 8 PhD students to completion and serves as a Program Committee Member and reviewer for numerous international conferences and journals. As Programme Leader for the MSc Advanced Computer Science, he plays a significant role in shaping postgraduate education in computer science at Northumbria University. His research group work bridges theoretical advances in neural computation with practical applications across multiple domains. Based in CIS 305 at Northumbria University's Newcastle campus, Dr. Belatreche continues to advance research in neuromorphic computing and its applications while contributing to academic leadership through his programme leadership role.
Professor John Cosmas is a leading academic in digital media and broadcast networks at Brunel University London, within the College of Engineering, Design and Physical Sciences. He earned a BEng in Electronic Engineering (1978) from Liverpool University and a PhD in Image Processing (1987) from Imperial College, following industrial roles at Tube Investments and Fairchild Camera. His research spans 5G, Internet of Radio Light (IoRL), and convergence of broadcast/telecom networks. 2006-2008: PLUTO (530K EU project) 2004-2005: INSTINCT (750K EU project) 2000-2001: SAMBITS (250K EU project) His work integrates architectural and electronic design for radio-light networks in smart homes/museums, with recent focus on tactile internet and tele-surgery applications. Over 150 publications and supervision of 20+ PhD students highlight his impact in: 5G/Tactile Internet Antenna & Coverage Optimization Cultural Heritage Multimedia He has served as Associate Editor for IEEE Transactions on Broadcasting since 2006 and chairs IEEE symposia globally. His students now lead projects in 5G, IoT, and network management.
Professor Maria Martini is Course Director for MSc Network and Data Communications and MSc Mobile Networks and Media Streaming at Kingston University's Department of Networks and Digital Media. She leads the Wireless Multimedia Networking Research Group and holds a Laurea in Electronic Engineering (University of Perugia) and a PhD in Electronics and Computer Science (University of Bologna). Research interests include wireless multimedia networks, video quality assessment, machine learning, and medical applications. Recent articles focus on light-field visualization, medical imaging quality, and neuromorphic sensor data compression. Awards include recognition as a top 2% global scientist by Stanford University. Stanford University Top 2% World Scientist Extensive editorial experience includes IEEE Signal Processing Magazine and IEEE Transactions on Multimedia. Serves on boards for NetWorld2020 ETP and Video Quality Expert Group (VQEG).
Prof. Toktam Mahmoodi is a Professor of Communications Engineering at King's College London, affiliated with the Department of Engineering under the Faculty of Natural, Mathematical & Engineering Sciences. She leads the Centre for Telecommunications Research, focusing on advanced networking, edge computing, and 5G/6G technologies. Her academic journey includes a BSc from Sharif University of Technology and a PhD from King's College London. Education: BSc in Electrical Engineering, Sharif University of Technology PhD in Telecommunications, King's College London Research Interests: Her work spans ultra-low latency networking, network virtualization, edge intelligence, and sustainable communication systems. She explores integration of cloud and mobile networks, autonomous networks, and energy-efficient solutions. Key areas include federated learning, tactile internet, and telemedicine applications. Grants & Projects: Principal Investigator for the Native Sensing in 6G Networks - Capgemini project (2023-2027). Co-Investigator in the VERGE project for AI-driven edge architectures (2023-2025). Lead in the ANIARA initiative for connected car communications (2020-2022). Pioneered projects like SoftEdge Networking and Primo-5G for immersive telepresence. Labs & Teams: Director of the Centre for Telecommunications Research, a global leader in telecommunications and cybersecurity research.
Jason Clarke is a Lecturer in Psychology at the University of West London, affiliated with the School of Human and Social Sciences. He holds a B.A. (Hons) in Classical Studies from University College London, an M.A. and Ph.D. in Psychology from The New School for Social Research. His career includes roles as a Postdoctoral Teaching and Research Fellow in the Sensation and Perception Laboratory at The New School (2014–2017), Visiting Assistant Professor at SUNY Farmingdale (2018–2020), and part-time lecturing at institutions like the City University of New York and Princeton University. Clarke’s research focuses on cognitive processes underlying visual perception, time perception, and consciousness. He integrates predictive processing frameworks (e.g., Free Energy Principle) to explore how expectation and attention shape conscious experience. His book, *Constructing Experience: Expectation and Attention in Perception* (2024), synthesizes empirical findings on inattentional blindness and change blindness. Key research directions include the role of generative models in perception and the quantum/classical probability debate in cognition. Education : B.A. Classical Studies, University College London M.A. Psychology, The New School for Social Research Ph.D. Cognitive Psychology, The New School for Social Research Teaching : Cognitive Psychology Cognitive Neuroscience Sensation and Perception His PhD students Becky Tyler (attention-expectation interactions) and Gergely Gerstmayer (gravity’s impact on time perception) extend his work into applied domains like spaceflight adaptation and virtual reality. Clarke’s research aligns with UN SDGs 3 (Health), 4 (Education), and 9 (Innovation). Clarke has contributed to courses across undergraduate and postgraduate programs at UWL, including BSc Psychology, MSc Psychology of Mental Health, and PhD Psychology.
