The science of intelligence
Research in brain-inspired artificial intelligence, and its implications for how we build, govern and live with intelligent systems.
- Brain-inspired AI
- Neuromorphic intelligence
- Agentic systems
- Enterprise and societal implications
Published research
Journal articles in brain-inspired AI and spiking neural networks.
- 2021NeuroSense: Short-Term Emotion Recognition and Understanding Based on Spiking Neural Network Modelling of Spatio-Temporal EEG Patterns ↗
C. Tan, M. Šarlija, N. Kasabov
Neurocomputing, vol. 434, pp. 137–148 · DOI 10.1016/j.neucom.2020.12.098
Recognises short-term emotional states from EEG brain signals by modelling how patterns of activity unfold across space and time in a spiking neural network.
Peer-reviewed - 2020Spiking Neural Networks: Background, Recent Development and the NeuCube Architecture ↗
C. Tan, M. Šarlija, N. Kasabov
Neural Processing Letters, vol. 52, no. 2, pp. 1675–1701 · DOI 10.1007/s11063-020-10322-8
A review of spiking neural networks, from their biological background to recent developments, with a detailed account of the NeuCube brain-inspired architecture.
Peer-reviewed - 2020FusionSense: Emotion Classification Using Feature Fusion of Multimodal Data and Deep Learning in a Brain-Inspired Spiking Neural Network ↗
C. Tan, G. Ceballos, N. Kasabov, N. Puthanmadam Subramaniyam
Sensors, vol. 20, no. 18, article 5328 (open access) · DOI 10.3390/s20185328
Classifies emotion by fusing features from several kinds of data and combining deep learning with a brain-inspired spiking neural network.
Peer-reviewed
A note on names: earlier peer-reviewed publications appear under the name C. Tan (Clarence Tan), a name Dr. Elias Kairos Chen previously used.
Working papers and preprints
Recent work that has not yet completed peer review.
- 2025Beyond Transformers: A Neuro-Symbolic and Quantum Hybrid Architecture Toward Artificial General Intelligence ↗
E. K. Chen
TechRxiv preprint · DOI 10.36227/techrxiv.176127375.51816942/v1
Proposes an architecture that combines neural, symbolic and quantum approaches as a path beyond today's transformer models toward general intelligence.
Preprint, not peer-reviewed - 2025Neuroplasticity and Digital Media: Brain Development Implications for Adolescent Mental Health. A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Neuroimaging Studies ↗
E. K. Chen, V. Tan, K. Garcia-Tan
OSF Preprints · DOI 10.31234/osf.io/bjfyr_v1
Reviews neuroimaging evidence on how digital media use relates to adolescent brain development and mental health.
Preprint, not peer-reviewed - 2025Privacy by Psychology: Developmental Framework for Adolescent Digital Rights and Family Relationships ↗
E. K. Chen
Preprint (Europe PMC)
Proposes a developmental framework for adolescents' digital privacy and rights, set within family relationships.
Preprint, not peer-reviewed
A plain-language guide
Accessible descriptions for non-technical readers.
Brain-inspired AI
Most AI today is loosely modelled on the brain. Brain-inspired AI goes further, borrowing how real neurons communicate, learn and adapt over time.
Why it matters for leaders: it points to AI that learns continuously from less data and uses far less energy.
Spiking neural networks
Instead of passing numbers continuously, spiking networks communicate through brief electrical pulses, as biological neurons do. Timing carries information.
Why it matters: they are well suited to signals that change over time, such as sensors, speech, physiological data and markets.
Neuromorphic computing
Hardware and software designed around the brain's architecture, processing information where it is stored rather than shuttling it back and forth.
Why it matters: it could make capable AI run on devices at the edge, with a fraction of today's energy cost.
Intelligent systems
How many specialised AI components, agents and people combine into systems that perceive, decide and act, and where those systems fail.
Why it matters: enterprise AI is becoming a system of agents, so governing the system matters as much as any single model.
From research to practice
How the research informs applied frameworks developed through Kiros Intelligence Group.
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Research and ideas
Brain-inspired AI, agency and the future of intelligence.
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Financial value creation
Which lines in the accounts can AI move, at what full cost?
Agent Value Ledger ↗ - 4
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Measured outcomes
Results tracked against the baseline, and reported honestly.