Art-Science Breakfast 2025

In 2025, the Grand Café at the Grand Palais in Paris hosted the traditional Art-Science Breakfast, a must-attend event bringing together patrons, researchers, artists and clinicians committed to neuroscience research. Hosted by journalist Natacha Polony and under the patronage of François Henrot, this edition took on a special significance for the Institute: the celebration of its 15th anniversary and the official launch of its strategic fundraising campaign, The Brain Challenge (2023-2028), which aims to accelerate research into brain diseases.

Looking back on 15 years of scientific advances

Professor Gérard Saillant, who has chaired the Institute since its creation in 2010 and is now its Honorary President, highlighted the strength of the Institute’s model. Based on cooperation between the public and private sectors, an entrepreneurial spirit and collaborative research between patients, doctors and scientists, this model has led to many concrete advances. These include the treatment of resistant focal epilepsy, now managed with non-invasive drug therapy, and the development of therapeutic ultrasound, now routinely used in clinical practice to treat severe essential tremors with rapid and spectacular results.

Artificial intelligence at the heart of scientific strategy

Professor Stéphanie Debette, Executive Director, outlined the strategic priorities of Paris Brain Institute for the coming years, highlighting in particular the creation of the Artificial Intelligence and Data Science Centre. She emphasised that artificial intelligence technologies have now reached a level of maturity sufficient to revolutionise neuroscience research, pave the way for new therapeutic approaches and structure precision medicine capable of better preventing, detecting and treating brain diseases.

Art and neuroscience: a dialogue between researchers, patients and artists

The morning celebrated the unique intersection between science, humanity and art. Dr Mehdi Touat, researcher and clinician at Paris Brain Institute and Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital, presented his research on glioblastomas, highlighting the central role of the Artificial Intelligence and Data Science Centre in rapidly identifying new therapeutic targets in these highly aggressive brain tumours. His discussion with Natacha Polony also allowed for a discussion of the human dimension of care and the importance of patient support. Emotions ran high during the testimony of Alexandra Curiel-Joffo, who supports research in memory of her husband who passed away from glioblastoma, illustrating the power of collaboration between patients, families and researchers to advance science. True to the Institute’s Art-Science spirit, the event also opened a dialogue between artist Oliver Beer and curator Rebecca Lamarche-Vadel on the resonance between artistic creation and scientific discoveries. The presentation of the work Resonance Painting (Waves Know Shores, 2025), the result of his exchanges with the Institute’s team, was accompanied by a choral performance, bringing science and art together in perfect harmony.

The Brain Challenge: our strategic fundraising campaign

This edition was an opportunity to present The Brain Challenge, Paris Brain Institute’s strategic fundraising campaign, running from 2023 to 2028. Chaired by Martine Assouline and Maurice Lévy, this initiative is supported by a Campaign Committee bringing together philanthropists from the worlds of economics, industry and culture. It aims to mobilise major French and international donors and patrons to support the most ambitious research programmes in neuroscience.

At the closing of the event, Paris Brain Institute’s new President, Serge Weinberg, praised the commitment and loyalty of our patrons and major donors, thanks to whom the Institute can pursue its ambition of global leadership in the field of neuroscience.

Learn more about The Brain Challenge.

We would like to thank Art Basel Paris, the Fondation Lafayette Anticipations and the Groupe Loulou for their support.