Neurodesk’s innovative ability to help researchers process and analyse massive neuroimaging datasets was recognised late last month at the 2025 National iAwards, presented in Adelaide.
Neurodesk is led and supported by The University of Queensland and the National Imaging Facility, in collaboration with NIF partners including Swinburne University of Technology and the University of Sydney.
The 10 iAwards are presented by Australia’s peak industry representative body for innovative technology, the Australian Information Industry Association (AIIA).
Neurodesk won the Technology Platform category for its vision in embracing open science, meaning discoveries can be reproducible, accessible and collaborative.
Neurodesk streamlines processing of vast amounts of neuroimaging data, opening up access to researchers searching for critical answers about brain disorders and diseases such as epilepsy, dementia, schizophrenia and traumatic brain injury.
NIF Imaging Informatics Fellow Aswin Narayanan said one of the keys to the success of their nomination was the impact of the platform for clinical translation.
“Our integration means Neurodesk software can now run directly on Siemens MRI scanners, enabling cutting-edge algorithms to be run at the moment of acquiring the scans.,” he said. “This can accelerate translation of innovations to clinical applications.”
“The [Technology Platform] award is the most competitive one of the 10 presented by AIIA, with the most nominees. We really showed the impact, and that’s what made the difference.”
In its listing of award winners, AIIA stated that the “Neurodesk project embodies the essence of open science and has already demonstrated sustained and impactful contributions to the field.”
One of the judges, Litsa Roberts, wrote on her LinkedIn that: “By simplifying neuroimaging, fostering collaboration and empowering scientists to handle large datasets, this [Neurodesk] breakthrough not only advances our understanding of the healthy human brain but also sheds light on the intricacies of various brain disorders promising improved diagnostics and treatments in the future.”
Neurodesk’s user-friendly browser interface means researchers worldwide can access many neuroimaging tools to focus on their research questions rather than grappling with IT issues. It streamlines the complex and often multi-year process of offline workflow development and troubleshooting.
Researchers can also use Neurodesk to make sure tools run identically no matter what computing environment they are using to perform their analyses. In this way, researchers can more easily replicate studies and results.
The platform now serves more than 1,500 active monthly users from over 70 countries worldwide.
UQ Postdoctoral Research Fellow and NIF Fellow Michèle Masson-Trottier, who received the award for the team, said, “I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve built together. This recognition is a testament to the creativity, commitment, and collaboration of the entire team.”
The Neurodesk platform also underpins the interactive analysis component of the Australian Imaging Service and NIF Foundational Digital Infrastructure.
The team is now working on an extension of the core technology for next stage of the platform, called sciget.org, that supports the broader imaging community and scientific domains.