Dr Maitreyee Wairagkar receives Gruber International Research award in neuroscience
UC Davis neuroscientist Dr Maitreyee Wairagkar has received the Peter and Patricia Gruber International Research Award in Neuroscience for her pioneering work on brain-computer interfaces that restore speech and movement.
Pune-born neuroscientist Dr Maitreyee Wairagkar has won the prestigious Gruber International Research Award for her pioneering brain-computer interface research.
Dr Maitreyee Wairagkar, a UC Davis neuroscientist and neuroengineer, who hails from Pune and is based in the United States, has been awarded the esteemed Peter and Patricia Gruber International Research Award in Neuroscience for her pioneering work in brain-computer interface (BCI) technology.
The award, presented by the Gruber Foundation, recognises Dr Wairagkar’s current and past work on neuroprostheses aimed at restoring lost speech and movement in individuals with neurological injury. The award, accompanied by a $25,000 prize, was announced during the Society for Neuroscience’s annual meeting in San Diego recently.
When contacted via email, Dr Wairagkar who has studied at Fergusson College, said she was honoured to receive the Gruber International Research Award. “This recognition is not only a personal milestone, but also a reflection of the support I have received from mentors and colleagues and, above all, of the collaborative spirit and shared passion to help improve the quality of life for people affected by neurological injury.
We are in a very interesting phase where decades of academic BCI research along with recent acceleration in industry effort has started to demonstrate the real benefit of BCI to people with paralysis. This is an exciting time for early career neuroscience researchers to expand the scope of their research and pursue bold ideas to propel our fundamental understanding of how brain controls complex motor behaviours with practical applications in neuroprosthesis,” she said.
A breakthrough in Brain-Computer Interface technology
Dr Wairagkar’s research focuses on one of the most challenging areas in neuroscience: creating brain-computer interfaces that allow individuals to interact with the outside world despite physical disabilities. Her most notable achievement, the brain-to-voice BCI, translates neural signals from a person’s brain into speech in real-time. In a remarkable demonstration of the system’s capabilities, a person with ALS was able to communicate using a computer system that reproduced his voice with remarkable fidelity, capturing not only his words but the rhythm, pitch, and expressive nuances of speech—a feat previously thought impossible. Her first-author research work was published in global lead research journal, the Nature, earlier this year.
The journey from Pune to global scientific recognition
Dr Maitreyee’s path to this landmark achievement began in Pune, where she was raised and educated. After her schooling in Pune, her fascination with the human brain and the potential of artificial intelligence (AI) led her to pursue a unique integrated Masters in Engineering course in AI and Cybernetics at the University of Reading in the UK. There she began developing a deep interest in medical technologies and brain-computer interfaces, which led her to conduct PhD research focused on decoding movement from cortical activity. She recognized the potential of neurotechnologies in improving the quality of life of people with neurological disorders by restoring lost function. Her work on stroke rehabilitation technology was commercialised. Dr Wairagkar continued her post-doctoral research at Imperial College London, where she expanded her work to include social robotics and AI to help older individuals with dementia. She developed affective social robots to assist the people with dementia in their homes. An innovative approach to assistive neurotechnologies earned her international recognition, including being showcased at the Royal Institution’s Christmas Lectures and the Science Museum in London. In 2023, she was awarded the India UK Achievers Honor for Science and Innovation, and in 2022, she was recognized as a runner-up in the Nature Inspiring Women in Science Awards.
Challenges on the road to innovation
Dr Wairagkar’s journey, however, was not without significant challenges. Being a woman in the male-dominated field of neuroengineering was challenging. “There were moments when I felt like I had to prove myself more than others, but I’ve always believed in the importance of the work I am doing, and that belief has kept me moving forward,” she said. Being an international researcher also brings its own challenges. There are limited funding opportunities for international early career researchers which can be a major hurdle,” she said. The vexing scientific and technical challenges she faced in developing the brain-to-voice BCI were also formidable. Decoding neural signals with the precision required to synthesize natural-sounding speech was an incredibly complex task, never done before.
Overcoming obstacles as Indian woman in STEM
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In addition to the scientific and technical challenges, Dr Wairagkar’s career has been shaped by her experiences as an Indian woman in STEM. In a field where women are often underrepresented, Dr Wairagkar has had to break through several biases to prove her expertise. “This experience has inspired me to be at the forefront of championing for other women”, she said. She actively engages in science outreach to instil scientific curiosity in students.
Anuradha Mascarenhas is a Senior Editor at The Indian Express, based in Pune. With a career spanning three decades, she is one of the most respected voices in Indian journalism regarding healthcare, science and environment and research developments. She also takes a keen interest in covering women's issues .
Professional Background
Education: A gold medalist in Communication and Journalism from Savitribai Phule Pune University and a Master’s degree in Literature.
Author: She authored the biography At The Wheel Of Research, which chronicles the life and work of Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, the former Chief Scientist at the WHO.
Key Focus: She combines scientific accuracy with storytelling, translating complex medical research into compelling public and human-interest narratives.
Awards and Recognition
Anuradha has won several awards including the Press Council of India's national award for excellence in journalism under the gender based reporting category in 2019 and the Laadli Media award (gender sensitivity -2024). A recipient of the Lokmat journalism award (gender category-2022), she was also shortlisted for the RedInk awards for excellence in journalism-2021. Her debut book At The Wheel Of Research, an exclusive biography of Dr Soumya Swaminathan the inaugural chief scientist of World Health Organisation was also nominated in the Popular Choice Category of JK Paper AUTHER awards. She has also secured competitive fellowships including the Laadli Media Fellowship (2022), the Survivors Against TB – New Research in TB Media Fellowship (2023) and is part of the prestigious 2025 India Cohort of the WomenLift Health Leadership Journey.”
Recent Notable Articles (Late 2025)
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"Tata Memorial finds way to kill drug-resistant cancer cells" (Nov 26, 2025): Reporting on a breakthrough for triple-negative breast cancer, one of the most aggressive forms of the disease.
Discipline, diet and purpose; How a 97-year-old professor defies ageing'' (Nov 15, 2025) Report about Prof Gururaj Mutalik, the first Head of Department at Pune's B J Government Medical College who at 97 credits his longevity to healthy habits and a strong sense of purpose.
2. Environmental Health (The "Breathless Pune" Series)
Long-term exposure even to 'moderate' air leads to chronic heart, lung, kidney issues" (Nov 26, 2025): Part of an investigative series highlighting that even "safe" pollution levels are damaging to vital organs.
"For every 10 µg/m3 increase in PM2.5 level, there was 6-8% jump in medicine sales" (Nov 23, 2025): Using commercial data to prove the direct link between air quality and respiratory illnesses in Pune.
3. Lifestyle & Wellness News
"They didn't let cancer, diabetes and heart disease stop them from travelling" (Dec 22, 2025): A collaborative piece featuring survivors who share practical tips for traveling with chronic conditions.
At 17, his BP shot up to 200/120 mmHG; Lancet study flags why child and teen hypertension doubled between 2000 and 2020'' (Nov 12,2025)--A report that focusses on 17-year-old-boy's hypertensive crisis and reflects the rising global trend of high blood pressure among children and adolescents.
4. Scientific Recognition & Infrastructure
For promoting sci-comm, gender diversity: IUCAA woman prof highlighted in Nature" (Nov 25, 2025): Covering the global recognition of Indian women scientists in gender studies and physics.
Pune researchers find a spiral galaxy like the Milky Way from early universe'' (December 3, 2025)- A report on how Indian researchers discovered a massive galaxy that existed when the universe was just 1.5 billion years old , one of the earliest to have been observed so far.
Signature Beat: Health, Science & Women in Leadership
Anuradha is known for her COVID-19 reportage, where she was one of the first journalists to provide detailed insights into the Covishield and Covaxin trials. She has a dedicated interest in gender diversity in health and science, often profiling women researchers who are breaking the "leaky pipeline" in STEM fields. Her writing style is scrupulous, often featuring interviews with top-tier scientists and health experts from various institutions.
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