PeopleofSuperintelligence

Researcher

Tianzi Jiang

Also known as 蒋田仔

Tianzi Jiang is a neuroimaging researcher whose pattern-recognition work connects brain networks with intelligence and disease. He earned degrees in computational mathematics at Lanzhou and Zhejiang Universities and became a CASIA research professor in 1999. His 2009 study linked brain anatomical network efficiency with intelligence, and his later work includes a shared professorship at Queensland Brain Institute and the Human Brainnetome Atlas. IAPR named him a Fellow in 2020, and OHBM gave him the Glass Brain Award in 2026. As of October 2026, he directs the Beijing Key Laboratory of Brainnetome and Brain-Computer Interface at CASIA and the International Institute of Brain-Machine Intelligence at Harbin Institute of Technology (Shenzhen).

Badges

Timeline

  1. 1984–1994

    Degrees in computational mathematics

    He earns a BSc in computational mathematics at Lanzhou University in 1984, then an MSc and PhD in the same field at Zhejiang University in 1992 and 1994.

  2. 1994–2000

    CASIA and international posts

    He joins the Institute of Automation of the Chinese Academy of Sciences as a postdoctoral research fellow in 1994, becomes an associate research professor in 1996 and research professor in 1999. From 1997 to 1999, he works in the School of Mathematics at the University of New South Wales; from 1999 to 2000, he works in the Signal and Image Processing Group at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences.

  3. 2000–2003

    Research in Belfast and Houston

    He works in the School of Computer Science at Queen's University Belfast from 2000 to 2001. At the University of Houston, he works in the Department of Computer Science from 2002 to 2003.

  4. 2009

    Brain anatomical networks and intelligence

    He coauthors Brain Anatomical Network and Intelligence in 2009, linking higher intelligence scores with greater global efficiency of the brain's anatomical network.

  5. 2011–2016

    Brainnetome work and a QBI professorship

    In March 2011, he joins the University of Queensland in an appointment shared between the Queensland Brain Institute and the Centre for Advanced Imaging, becoming a Professorial Research Fellow and Professor of Neuroimaging. In 2013, he publishes Brainnetome: A new -ome to understand the brain and its disorders. In 2016, he coauthors the Human Brainnetome Atlas, which uses anatomical connectivity to map 210 cortical areas and 36 subcortical regions.

  6. 2020

    An IAPR Fellowship

    IAPR names him a Fellow in 2020 for contributions in pattern recognition toward understanding brain organization and dysfunction through neuroimaging.

  7. 2026

    The Glass Brain Award

    At OHBM's annual meeting in Bordeaux in June 2026, he receives the Glass Brain Award for lifetime achievement in human brain mapping. The award recognizes work that uses neuroimaging to study human brain organization and function.

  8. As of October 2026

    Professor and institute director

    As of October 2026, he is a professor and director of the Beijing Key Laboratory of Brainnetome and Brain-Computer Interface at CASIA and director of the International Institute of Brain-Machine Intelligence at Harbin Institute of Technology (Shenzhen). His research applies medical signal and image analysis, pattern recognition and machine learning to study brain networks and disorders.

Career

  1. NowInstitute of Automation, Chinese Academy of SciencesProfessor and Director
  2. NowHarbin Institute of Technology (Shenzhen)Director
  3. From 2011University of QueenslandProfessorial Research Fellow; Professor of Neuroimaging
  4. 2002–2003University of Houston
  5. 2000–2001Queen's University Belfast
  6. 1999–2000Max Planck Society
  7. 1997–1999UNSW Sydney
  8. 1994–1999Chinese Academy of SciencesPostdoctoral Research Fellow, Associate Research Professor

Education

  1. 1994Zhejiang UniversityPhD
  2. 1992Zhejiang UniversityMSc
  3. 1984Lanzhou UniversityBSc

From the biography.

  1. Universities keep AI researchers for a median of 6 years, compared with 2 years at frontier labsIncludes Chinese Academy of Sciences. Across 15,811 dated work stays (6,529 people), median role tenure runs from 6 years at universities to 2 years at frontier labs. We compare all five organization types, starting decades from the 1970s to the 2020s, and the organizations that keep people longest.
  2. People shaping AI work at a median of 3 organizations over a career: 3 for university starters and institute and lab starters, versus 2 for company startersIncludes Chinese Academy of Sciences. Across 6,853 people shaping AI with a dated work role, we estimate a median of 3 parent organizations over a career (mean 3.6), comparing role groups, starting sectors and starting decades from the 1950s to 2020–2026.
  3. The company share of AI researchers’ top papers was 31% in 2020–2024 and 8% in 1970–1974Includes Chinese Academy of Sciences. We estimate where the people shaping AI worked when their most-cited papers appeared: the company share was 31% in 2020–2024 and 8% in 1970–1974, and Google led all organizations in 2020–2024.
  4. Google has the highest combined h-index among AI organizationsIncludes Chinese Academy of Sciences. We estimate that Google holds the highest combined h-index at 8,016, while universities account for 73% of the deduplicated total across AI organizations.

Colleagues

People with dated positions at the same organization in the same years.

Sources and credits

Photo: We have no published photo of Tianzi Jiang yet. Send us a free-licensed photo.

  1. Tianzi Jiang: home nlpr.ia.ac.cn. Checked 20 October 2026.
  2. Brain Anatomical Network and Intelligence journals.plos.org. Checked 20 October 2026.
  3. New Professorial Research Fellow appointed at QBI - Queensland Brain Institute - University of Queensland qbi.uq.edu.au. Checked 20 October 2026.
  4. The Human Brainnetome Atlas: A New Brain Atlas Based on Connectional Architecture - PMC pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. Checked 20 October 2026.
  5. Chronological List of IAPR Fellows – International Association for Pattern Recognition iapr.org. Checked 20 October 2026.
  6. Glass Brain Award | Organization for Human Brain Mapping humanbrainmapping.org. Checked 20 October 2026.
  7. IEEE MedAI 2026 – Medical AI Conference in Zhengzhou medai2026.zzuli.edu.cn. Checked 20 October 2026.
  8. 蒋田仔----中国科学院自动化研究所 ia.cas.cn. Checked 20 October 2026.