Massimiliano Versace

Versace grew up in Monfalcone, Italy and came to the United States in 2001 as a Fulbright scholar. Versace holds a masters in psychology from the University of Trieste and a two PhDs (Experimental Psychology, University of Trieste, Italy—Cognitive and Neural Systems, Boston University, USA). As Artificial Intelligence Professor at Boston University, he founded the Neuromorphics Lab,[7][8][9][10] and in 2009-2011 the lab led a main research thrust in the DARPA SyNAPSE in collaboration with Hewlett-Packard designing artificial nervous systems, based on deep learning, implemented on novel memristive-based devices. In December 2010, Versace published a cover-featured articled on the IEEE Spectrum [11] describing the roadmap to develop a large scale brain model making use of memristor based technologies.

The model designed by Versace and his colleagues, termed Modular Neural Exploring Traveling Agent (MoNETA)[11] was the first large-scale neural network model to implement whole-brain circuits to power a virtual and robotic agent compatibly with memristor-based hardware computations. A cover page article in IEEE Computer [12] features the software platform and modeling implemented by the joint HP and Boston University teams, and the March 2012 edition of IEEE Pulse [13] features his lab work on brain modeling.

From 2011 to 2016, Versace and his team at Neurala [14] then worked with NASA and successfully built deep learning models able to learn in real-time to power navigation and perception for autonomous robots for exploration of novel environments.[15][16][17][18][19][20][21]

His work has also been featured in TIME Magazines,[22] New York Times,[23] Nasdaq[24],The Boston Globe,[25] Xconomy,[26] IEEE Spectrum,[27] Fortune,[28] CNBC[29],The Chicago Tribune,[30] TechCrunch,[31] VentureBeat,[32] Associated Press,[33] Geek Magazine,[34] and is a TEDx[35] speaker.

In 2006, with two colleagues from Boston University, he co-founded Neurala [36]Inc. to bring this technology to market[37] in applications ranging from robots, to drones, and other smart devices.[38][39][40][41]

Versace is a recipient of the Fulbright Fellowship in 2001. Career and company awards include:

• Gold prize at the Edison Award Best New Product in Social Innovation;[42]
• CB Insights 100 Most Promising AI Companies;[43]
• Draper Venture Network Most Innovative Company;[44]
• Disruptor Daily 100 Most Disruptive Companies,[45]

Versace is also recipient of the CELEST Award for Computational Modeling of Brain and Behavior in 2009, and was awarded top cited article 2008-2010 in Brain Research.

Massimiliano Versace's pioneered research in continual learning [46] [47][48][49] neural networks, in particular applied to cortical models of learning and memory, and how to build intelligent machines equipped with low-power, high density neural chips that implement large-scale brain circuits of increasing complexity. His Synchronous Matching Adaptive Resonance Theory (SMART) model[50][51] shows spiking laminar cortical circuits self-organize and stably learn relevant information, and how these circuits be embedded in low-power, memristor based hybrid CMOS chip and used to solve challenging pattern recognition problems. His work has been featured on Fortune,[52] Inc,[53] Tech Crunch,[54] IEEE Spectrum,[55] Venture Beat,[56] among others.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Memristors.

• Physical neural network
• Neuromorphic
• machine learning