Mariano Sigman

Mariano Sigman is an award-winning neuroscientist, global TED speaker, and distinguished non-fiction author. His interdisciplinary coupling of neuroscience, technology, and literature has allowed him to begin demystifying human decision-making, learning, creativity, leadership, and collective intelligence. Mariano’s expertise has helped bridge the link between human cognition, mental health, and AI, exploring how machines mirror brain processes and provoking questions about what makes us truly human.

An extensive academic background, Mariano earned a BSc in Physics from the University of Buenos Aires, going on to complete a PhD in Neuroscience at Rockefeller University, and undertook postdoctoral work in Cognitive Sciences at the Collège de France. He served as Director of the Integrative Neuroscience Laboratory at the University of Buenos Aires, then as Director of the Neuroscience Lab at Torcuato Di Tella University. He was a Visiting Professor at Carlos III University of Madrid, co-founding Sigmind, a platform that uses AI and technology to assist mental health professionals in diagnosing and caring for patients, serving as the former executive Chairman until 2025. Mariano is currently the Director of Research and Education at Scienseed.

He has received numerous prestigious awards, such as the Human Frontiers Career Development Award, National Prize of Physics in Argentina, Young Investigator Prize from Collège de France, IBM Scalable Data Analytics Award, and was named a Laureate of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, being awarded the Pio XI Medal in 2016. He is also the author of the international bestseller ‘The Secret Life of the Mind’, which explores how our brain shapes thought, emotion, decision-making, and creativity across various disciplines. His more recent book, ‘The Power of Words’, examines how language influences beliefs, learning, and the opinions we construct about ourselves and organisations.

Comfortable delivering major keynotes on topics such as how language shapes mental health, group decision‑making, and the neuroscience of leadership and creativity, Mariano’s TED talk and TEDxperiment demonstrate his interactive style, often incorporating experiments and live audience participation to make complex scientific ideas accessible and engaging. Through his speeches and narrative non-fictions, Mariano weaves together neuroscience, technology, AI, innovation, and education, enabling his words to have a real-world impact and leave audiences utterly fascinated and inspired.