Thomas’ story
Sussex is quite unlike anywhere else and it’s a pretty special place to be. I’m surrounded by fantastic colleagues, while Brighton is also a really nice city – and the weather isn’t half as bad as people say!Thomas Nowotny
Professor of Informatics
Co-Director of Sussex AI
“I’ve always been fascinated by how the world works. For years, I studied physics, exploring fundamental theories and asking the major questions of the universe. By the end of my PhD, however, I realised I wanted to specialise in a field with more practical applications, so I applied for a role in computational neuroscience over in San Diego, California.
I joined the Institute for Nonlinear Science, where a bunch of physicists and biologists were working together to figure out how the brain works. This was – and still is – an amazing mystery. Having been a theory guy for so long, I really enjoyed picking up experimental skills and learned to think about science in a very interdisciplinary way.
Since then, I’ve moved into artificial intelligence (AI) and Sussex felt like a natural match for me. I’m now Co-Director of the Sussex AI Research Centre and Head of the Sussex AI Research Group, where my colleagues and I are interested in investigating two key areas. The first is olfaction in insects – essentially, how insects smell and how they translate odours into ‘spikes’ that transmit information to their brains. The second is what we call ‘biomimetic AI’, or artificial intelligence inspired by biology.
We’re hoping to mimic the neural networks of our brains to make AI more energy efficient. The future will increasingly be defined by these complex technologies, so it’s vital to discover ways of balancing innovation with sustainability.
Collaboration is central to research here at Sussex and I’ve been building connections with research groups, companies and communities for many years. We work closely with the School of Life Sciences, where we’re able to achieve so much more by synthesising our expertise.
We’re also keen to share our research more widely, whether teaching schoolchildren how ants navigate pheromones, or presenting our projects to people ranging from beekeepers to perfumers and MPs.
Sussex is quite unlike anywhere else and it’s a pretty special place to be. I’m surrounded by fantastic colleagues, while Brighton is also a really nice city − and the weather isn’t half as bad as people say!”
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