Juan Bernabé-Moreno

Also known as Juan Bernabe Moreno

Juan Bernabé-Moreno is an AI research leader at IBM whose work brings foundation models into Earth, weather and solar science. He earned a computer science PhD at the University of Granada in 2015, led data and AI groups at Telefónica and E.ON, and joined IBM Research in 2022. His IBM work with NASA includes Prithvi WxC for weather and climate and Surya for solar physics; NASA's geospatial foundation-model team, which included him, received a 2024 Marshall Space Flight Center group award. As of October 2026, he is a director at IBM Research Europe for Ireland and the UK.

Now at: IBM
Badges: Bridge
Links: Website, Google Scholar, X and LinkedIn

Timeline

2002–2015

Granada computer science PhD

He earns an engineering degree in computer science at the University of Granada in 2002 and a master's in Soft Computing and Intelligent Systems in 2009. In 2015, he completes a computer science PhD there with a thesis on knowledge discovery in geo-localized social media networks.
2009–2017

Telefónica data science roles

From 2009 to 2017, he holds progressively senior roles in Telefónica Germany's Big Data and data-science teams. He leads the global Smart Steps product team, which wins a 2013 Best Corporate Venture Award.
2017–2022

E.ON chief data officer

He becomes E.ON's first Chief Data Officer and Global Head of Data and Analytics in 2017. Through 2022, he builds Data.ON to scale AI across the company, with work on automated wind-turbine maintenance and intraday energy trading.
2022

IBM Research in Ireland

In 2022, he joins IBM Research as director for Ireland and the UK, leading teams across Dublin, Hursley and Daresbury. He leads climate and sustainability research and IBM's Algorithms and Applications mission with NASA and ESA, and lectures on quantum applications and intelligent systems at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich.
2024

NASA geospatial AI award

In 2024, NASA names him among IBM's members of the geospatial AI foundation-model team, which receives the Marshall Space Flight Center Group Achievement Award. The open-source model uses NASA Earth-science data for flood, burn-scar and cropland studies.
September 2024

Prithvi WxC weather model

In September 2024, IBM and NASA release Prithvi WxC, an open-source foundation model for weather and climate applications. As IBM's climate and sustainability lead, he explains that a small local sample can help the model reconstruct global surface temperatures.
August 2025

Surya solar physics model

In August 2025, IBM and NASA release Surya, a heliophysics foundation model trained on nine years of Solar Dynamics Observatory observations that forecasts solar activity. He says the collaboration turns its focus to the Sun.
As of October 2026

IBM Research Europe director

As of October 2026, he is director of IBM Research Europe for Ireland and the UK, leading teams across Dublin, Hursley and Daresbury. IBM lists him as IBM Research Europe Director for a November 2026 discussion with theoretical physicist Jim Al-Khalili on quantum computing and AI.