PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Guillaume Dumas

Guillaume Dumas is a computational psychiatry researcher who applies AI to social cognition and mental health. He trained in engineering, theoretical physics, cognitive science and cognitive neuroscience, and his 2010 study found inter-brain synchrony during live imitation. His 2014 human dynamic clamp lets people coordinate with virtual partners, while a 2018 study links handholding during pain with brain-to-brain coupling and less pain. After research posts at Florida Atlantic University and Institut Pasteur, he moved to Montreal in 2020 to lead a lab focused on precision psychiatry and social physiology. As of October 2026, he is an associate professor at Université de Montréal, principal investigator at CHU Sainte-Justine and an academic member of Mila; his IVADO chair models social brain activity, and he has joined the Royal Society of Canada's College of New Scholars.

Born
1985

Years link to their sources.

Timeline

  1. 2010

    Inter-brain synchronization paper

    His training includes an engineering degree in advanced engineering and computer science at École Centrale Paris, MSc degrees in theoretical physics and cognitive science, and a cognitive neuroscience PhD at Sorbonne University. In 2010, he coauthors “Inter-Brain Synchronization during Social Interaction” in PLOS ONE with Jacqueline Nadel, Robert Soussignan, Jacques Martinerie and Line Garnero. Dual-EEG recordings of nine pairs imitating hand movements reveal an alpha-mu synchronizing network between the right centroparietal regions.

  2. 2014

    The human dynamic clamp

    In 2014, he coauthors a PNAS paper with Gonzalo C. de Guzman, Emmanuelle Tognoli and J. A. Scott Kelso that introduces the human dynamic clamp. The paradigm lets a person coordinate hand movements with a virtual partner driven by models of coordination dynamics.

  3. 2015

    A Young Investigator Award

    In 2015, Sage Bionetworks gives him its Young Investigator Award.

  4. 2018

    Brain coupling during handholding

    In 2018, he coauthors a PNAS study with Pavel Goldstein, Irit Weissman-Fogel and Simone G. Shamay-Tsoory; handholding during pain increases brain-to-brain coupling associated with pain reduction. At the Institut Pasteur, he is a research associate in its Human Genetics and Cognitive Functions Unit and a permanent researcher in neuroscience and computational biology, after a postdoctoral fellowship at Florida Atlantic University's Center for Complex Systems and Brain Sciences.

  5. 2020

    A lab in Montreal

    In fall 2020, he starts a new role in Montreal as principal investigator of the Precision Psychiatry and Social Physiology Laboratory at the CHU Sainte-Justine Research Center, affiliated with Université de Montréal. He receives IVADO's Professorial Chair for Computational Psychiatry and the FRQS research scholarship in AI and Digital Health in 2020.

  6. 2022

    A Brain Canada award

    In 2022, Brain Canada names him a Future Leader in Canadian Brain Research.

  7. 2023–2024

    CIFAR and The Peak recognition

    In 2023, CIFAR names him an Azrieli Global Scholar in its Brain, Mind, and Consciousness program. The Peak includes him among 23 emerging leaders in health in 2024; he is an academic member of Mila, holds IVADO's chair in AI and mental health, and has a Junior 1 research fellowship in AI and Digital Health from FRQS.

  8. As of October 2026

    Social Neuro-AI chair and professor

    In September 2025, IVADO names him to its Chair in Social Neuro-AI and Inter-Personalized Psychiatry for 2025–2030; the chair models brain-to-brain interactions and aims to develop artificial agents inspired by the social brain. Its research axes include hyperscanning and computational models of the social brain; in September 2026, he enters the Royal Society of Canada's College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists. As of October 2026, he is an associate professor of computational psychiatry at Université de Montréal, principal investigator at CHU Sainte-Justine's Precision Psychiatry and Social Physiology laboratory, and an academic member of Mila.

Career

  1. NowUniversité de MontréalAssociate Professor
  2. NowIVADOProfessorial Chair for Computational Psychiatry
  3. From 2020CHU Sainte-Justine Research CenterPrincipal Investigator
  4. From 2018Institut PasteurResearch Associate
  5. Florida Atlantic UniversityPostdoctoral Fellow
  6. MilaAcademic Member

Education

  1. École Centrale ParisEngineering degree
  2. Sorbonne UniversityPhD

From the biography.

  1. The median h-index is 48 at universities and 14 at frontier AI labsIncludes Université de Montréal. The median h-index is 48 at universities and 14 at frontier AI labs. We compare publishing careers, recent citations, dual appointments and job moves across 2,420 university researchers and 308 frontier-lab researchers.
  2. 20% of people at companies who shape AI also hold a university role, led by Google and Stanford UniversityIncludes Université de Montréal. We estimate that 539 of the 6,766 people with a known current organization (8%) hold both a university role and a company role, including 20% of people at companies and 13% of people at universities.
  3. Of 943 people shaping AI who worked at Google, 446 work there nowIncludes Université de Montréal. Our estimates of where the 943 people shaping AI who worked at Google and Google DeepMind work now: 446 at Google and 452 across 278 other organizations.
  4. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology trained or employed 44 of the 187 AI major-prize winners, more than any other universityIncludes Université de Montréal. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology trained or employed 44 of the 187 AI major-prize winners, more than any other university. We compare doctorate and 5+ year employment links, career timing and current workplaces for 187 major-prize and 1,111 best-paper winners.

Sources and credits

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  1. Guillaume Dumas | Mila mila.quebec. Checked 22 October 2026.
  2. Inter-Brain Synchronization during Social Interaction | PLOS One journals.plos.org. Checked 22 October 2026.
  3. The human dynamic clamp as a paradigm for social interaction | PMC pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. Checked 22 October 2026.
  4. Guillaume Dumas – CIFAR cifar.ca. Checked 22 October 2026.
  5. Just the two of us: Holding hands can ease pain, sync brainwaves pasteur.fr. Checked 22 October 2026.
  6. Guillaume Dumas, Associate Professor of Computational Psychiatry, has been named by The Peak as one of the emerging leaders in the health category sensum.openum.ca. Checked 22 October 2026.
  7. Guillaume Dumas nommé leader émergent en santé | UdeM Nouvelles nouvelles.umontreal.ca. Checked 22 October 2026.
  8. Guillaume Dumas rejoint les rangs du programme CIFAR-Azrieli | Université de Montréal psychiatrie.umontreal.ca. Checked 22 October 2026.
  9. IVADO announces the creation of six new research chairs in artificial intelligence with the support of the Fonds de recherche du Québec | HEC Montréal hec.ca. Checked 22 October 2026.
  10. Guillaume Dumas | IVADO ivado.ca. Checked 22 October 2026.
  11. Kim Lavoie et Guillaume Dumas élus à la Société royale du Canada | Faculté de médecine medecine.umontreal.ca. Checked 22 October 2026.