NEXT.BIO 2025 - Brain and BCI as the next frontier interface
In October 2025, A16Z #SFTechWeek will once again take over San Francisco. We are organizing NEXT.BIO, a world-class week long tech conference featuring the best startups, industry leaders and investors in AI x BIO across a series of Tech Events, a unique Hackathon and a DEMO Day 🚀
This event is one of our Tech Event series part of the full-week conference.
🧩 Suggested Themes & Challenges:
Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs): Develop applications that allow direct communication between the brain and external devices.
Neurodata Visualization: Create tools to visualize complex neural datasets for research or educational purposes.
Cognitive Enhancement: Innovate solutions aimed at improving memory, attention, or learning capabilities.
What is are the neuroscience available datasets?
🧠 General & Multimodal Datasets
OpenNeuro: A comprehensive platform offering over 1,400 public datasets across MRI, PET, MEG, EEG, and iEEG modalities. All datasets adhere to the BIDS standard, facilitating reproducibility and ease of use. openneuro.org
EBRAINS: Provides access to a wide array of neuroscience data, computational models, and software tools for researchers, clinicians, and students. ebrains.eu
Allen Brain Atlas: Offers detailed gene expression maps and anatomical data for both mouse and human brains, supporting research in neuroanatomy and genomics. Wikipedia
🧬 Specialized Datasets
Human Connectome Project (HCP): Provides extensive structural and functional brain imaging data from over 1,000 healthy adults, as well as lifespan and disease-specific cohorts. Wikipedia
MICrONS Dataset: Features a detailed connectome of a mouse visual cortex, including data from 76,000 neurons and over 500 million synapses, offering insights into neural circuitry. Live Science
Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI): Provides longitudinal MRI, PET, genetic, and clinical data to study the progression of Alzheimer's disease. Wikipedia
🧩 Other Notable Resources
NeuroMorpho.Org: A curated repository of digitally reconstructed neurons from various species, brain regions, and cell types. neuinfo.org
BOLD5000: An fMRI dataset containing responses to nearly 5,000 images, useful for studies in visual perception and computational modeling. arXiv
VesselGraph: A graph-based dataset representing the mouse brain's vasculature, suitable for research in graph learning and neurovascular studies.