Working with Prof. Fabian Sinz at the University of Tübingen, his research has made significant contributions to the field of computational neuroscience. His work on information processing in the mouse visual cortex resulted in a publication in Nature, advancing our understanding of mechanisms of visual computations.
We are thrilled to feature Konstantin Willeke as our next IMPRS-IS Scholar Spotlight!
Konstantin joined IMPRS-IS in 2020, working under the supervision of Fabian Sinz at the University of Tübingen, in close collaboration with Alexander Ecker. Konstantin's research focuses on using deep neural networks to model the response of large neuronal populations in the visual cortex, aiming to understand the fundamental principles of the brain's organization and neuronal information processing.
His research has made significant contributions to the field of computational neuroscience. His work on information processing in the mouse visual cortex resulted in a publication in Nature (https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-05270-3), advancing our understanding of mechanisms of visual computations. In addition to his primary research, Konstantin hosted a NeurIPS competition that challenged participants to develop accurate models for predicting neuronal responses in the mouse visual cortex. This initiative established a valuable benchmark platform that bridges the gap between the neuroscience and machine learning communities, encouraging cross-disciplinary collaboration.
Konstantin's academic background includes a Master's degree from the Graduate Training Center for Neuroscience in Tübingen and a Bachelor's degree from the Technical University of Chemnitz, where he specialized in Sensory Systems and Cognitive Psychology.
Throughout his time with IMPRS-IS, Konstantin served as a student representative for the University of Tübingen from 2021 to 2022. In this role, he organized academic and networking events that facilitated knowledge exchange and community building. He is immensely grateful to have been part of such a supportive, lively, inspiring, and fun community of researchers and scholars.
In the summer of 2023, from May to August, Konstantin took a four-month hiatus from his doctoral studies to fulfill a lifelong dream: completing a 12,000-kilometer bicycle journey from Germany to Central Asia. His route traversed the Alps, crossed the Bosporus into Asia, continued through the Kazakh desert, and ascended the Pamir Mountains into Kyrgyzstan. While there, he participated in and completed the Silk Road Mountain Race, a two-week-long bikepacking race across the remote mountains of Kyrgyzstan.
Konstantin defended his PhD in January of this year and moved to Stanford University as a Postdoctoral Researcher, where he's leading the ML team of the Enigma project (https://www.enigmaproject.ai/). This large-scale initiative aims to build a comprehensive computational model of the brain, further advancing our understanding of neural information processing and the fundamental principles of intelligence.
Congratulations to Konstantin on his many accomplishments! We are proud to have him as a part of IMPRS-IS!
Climbing up Jukuu pass in Kyrgyzstan during the Silk Road Mountain Race
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