About us
BRAIN is the Belgian Research lab for AI in INdustry. It is an applied research initiative led by DT Services and Consulting.
BRAIN bridges the gap between cutting-edge academic research and industrial innovation by developing practical, responsible AI solutions for real-world business challenges.
Our lab operates at the intersection of science, engineering, and entrepreneurship, with the ambition to translate machine learning, computer vision, reinforcement learning, and NLP research into scalable tools that deliver tangible value to our partners across sectors such as manufacturing, logistics, mobility, and healthcare.
As both a research and deployment environment, BRAIN fosters collaboration between universities, public institutions, and forward-looking companies to advance responsible, human-centric, and high-impact AI.
We are firmly committed to the open dissemination of our research through open-access publications, reproducible code, public datasets, and knowledge-sharing events – ensuring that the benefits of AI innovation are accessible to the wider research and industrial communities.
We believe in an inclusive, ethical, and scalable AI future – and we are building it, together.
Our Values
At BRAIN, we uphold the core values which guide our research and collaborations:
Integrity
We commit to ethical AI development, transparency, and accountability in every project.
Innovation
We champion creativity and curiosity, continuously pushing the boundaries of what’s possible with AI.
Impact
We prioritize results and real-world outcomes, ensuring our work delivers value to clients and society
Collaboration
We believe great breakthroughs happen through co-creation. We work side by side with partners from industry and academia.
Agility
In a fast-evolving tech landscape, we adapt quickly, experiment boldly, and learn continuously.
Governance
BRAIN is operating under the scientific and technical direction of its CTO.
It functions with a hybrid governance model:
- Scientific Steering:
Guided by an internal scientific board and an external advisory network composed of academic and industry experts. - Operational Autonomy:
While aligned with DTSC’s corporate mission, BRAIN maintains research autonomy in the pursuit of academic collaborations and independent experimentation. - Collaborative Frameworks:
We engage in joint PhDs, public-private partnerships, and competitive research programs (e.g., Win4Doc, Horizon Europe, EDIH) to ensure both excellence and relevance.
Funding and Sustainability
BRAIN operates through a dynamic and resilient funding model that combines public support with strong industrial collaboration. This hybrid approach ensures both scientific independence and direct industrial impact.
Our workforce and early-stage research activities are partially funded through a diversified portfolio of public programs, strategic partnerships, and private investment, allowing BRAIN to pursue long-term research while remaining closely aligned with real-world challenges.
Three Funding Pillars
BRAIN’s activities are sustained by three complementary pillars:
- Private Investment from DT Services and Consulting (DTSC): core initial funding that supports BRAIN’s strategic direction, initial research efforts, infrastructure, and talent development. This long-term commitment ensures stability and continuity across research programs.
- Public Funding: BRAIN actively participates in regional, national, and European public funding schemes. These programs support early-stage research, exploratory projects, and collaborative initiatives with academic and public research partners.
- Business-to-Business (B2B) Collaboration: Through industrial partnerships, contract research, and applied AI projects, BRAIN generates revenue while transferring research outcomes into practical, high-impact solutions for industry.
Public Funding
BRAIN benefits from public funding instruments that support research, innovation, and knowledge transfer across Belgium and Europe. These programs contribute to early-stage research, proof-of-concept development, and collaborative projects with academic and institutional partners.
Our public funding support may originate from:
- Win4Doc (Wallonia)
- Win4Company (Wallonia)
- Innoviris (Brussels Capital Region)
- Baekeland Mandaten (Flanders)
- European and regional innovation frameworks
- Other institutional and academic partners
These mechanisms allow BRAIN to explore high-risk, high-impact research topics while strengthening collaboration between industry, research centers, and public authorities.
B2B and Industrial Collaboration
Through DT Services and Consulting (DTSC), BRAIN offers a comprehensive range of data science and artificial intelligence expertise, covering the full lifecycle from ideation to deployment.
In addition to direct industrial collaboration, several public schemes are available to co-fund Proofs of Concept (PoC) or Minimum Viable Products (MVP), depending on the fiscal residence of the client.
Available Schemes by Region
Wallonia
Brussels Capital Region
- Start IA (Innoviris – Innovation Vouchers)
Flanders
- KMO-portefeuille (VLAIO)
These instruments help reduce financial risk for companies while accelerating the adoption of AI solutions with tangible business value.
Transparency and Long-Term Sustainability
BRAIN maintains a firm commitment to transparency. A complete and up-to-date list of our funding sources is available here:
——— Work In Progress ——–
Looking ahead, our objective is to ensure long-term sustainability by balancing our revenue streams as follows:
- Up to 50% from public research and innovation funding
- 25% from licensing of research outcomes and technologies
- 25% from industry-driven AI projects delivering concrete value to business partners
This balanced model allows BRAIN to combine scientific excellence, financial resilience, and industrial relevance.
They joined us
Our recent projects
PhD and Postdoctoral researchers are already working with BRAIN to debiase Large Language Models, developing a Digital Twin and Causality algorithms, and Machine Learning Models.
