HEAD Lab to co-lead new national BRAIN-SAFE hub with Brain Sciences
Imperial is to lead BRAIN-SAFE, a new national hub developing data-driven technologies to predict, prevent and manage traumatic brain injury in sport, transport and defence — co-led by Mazdak Ghajari and Professor David Sharp.
Imperial is to lead BRAIN-SAFE (Brain Research for Adaptive Traumatic Injury: Simulation, Assessment, Forecasting & Education), one of five new national hubs announced by UKRI, together backed by more than £52 million in UK government funding. BRAIN-SAFE will bring together engineers, neuroscientists, AI specialists, mathematicians, and sports and behavioural scientists to build computer models that estimate an individual’s injury risk after a head impact, accounting for factors such as age, sex and previous injuries — with applications ranging from real-time pitch-side impact alerts to safer helmets, improved vehicle safety ratings and better military protection.
The hub is co-led by Professor David Sharp (Department of Brain Sciences) and HEAD Lab’s own Professor Mazdak Ghajari, and focuses on the sport, transport and defence settings where head impacts are common. Partners include the Royal Air Force, Rugby Football League, Rugby Football Union, Prem Rugby, Premiership Women’s Rugby, World Rugby, GB Boxing and Jaguar Land Rover.