Maxime Beau

Hi, welcome to my website!

I am a researcher in systems and computational neuroscience. I have the conviction that to prevent random-walk science, ideas derived from theory and experiments must float and collide in the same teams, ideally in the same minds, not the same universities. My research combines experimental techniques like electrophysiology, optogenetics, and rodent behaviour with modelling (biophysical modeling, dynamical systems, deep learning). By bridging these domains, I aim to help shed light on how neural circuits give rise to behaviour and cognition, which I believe can only be achieved through collaboration.

Some of my work:

• A deep-learning strategy to predict neuron type identity from their electrical signature (Beau et al., Cell, 2025). Explore the data at c4-database.com (why should we care about neuron cell-typing?).
• Co-discovery of reward signals encoded in the cerebellum teaching pathway (Kostadinov et al., 2019, Nature Neuroscience)
• NeuroPyxels, a generalist Python package to analyze Neuropixels data

I received my Ph.D. in Neuroscience from University College London in 2025. There, I investigated how the cerebellum’s output pathway encodes and transmits information in behaving rodents, using high-density electrophysiology and optogenetics. I was also the lead contributor of an international collaboration that developed a deep-learning strategy for identifying neural cell-types from their electrophysiological properties. This exciting work was made possible through collaborations with Prof. Dana Cohen, Steve Lisberger, and Javier Medina, the guidance of my advisors Prof. Michael Häusser and Prof. Beverley Clark, and the mentorship of Dr. Dimitar Kostadinov.

Before that, I studied medicine and neuroscience as part of an MD-PhD programme shared between Université Paris Descartes, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, and École Normale Supérieure. In this context, I worked in the lab of Boris Barbour at the Institut de Biologie de l’École Normale Supérieure.

In my free time, I practice Shotokan Karate, which I taught at the Kentish town Karate club in London from 2022 to 2025, and love nostalgically cooking French cuisine and dialing in tasty espresso - especially for friends!

I’m thrilled about the future of neuroscience and can’t wait to see where our collective efforts take us. If you’re interested in discussing research, collaborations, or just want to chat about the brain over coffee, please don’t hesitate to reach out!