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
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.
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