The Rice Neuroengineering Initiative (NEI) is supported by an investment of $50 million from Rice University’s Trustees to establish an interdisciplinary, multi-institutional center that fosters collaboration between research faculty in the George R. Brown School of Engineering and Computing and research scientists and clinicians from several Texas Medical Center institutions, including the Baylor College of Medicine, Houston Methodist, and the University of Texas McGovern School of Medicine. The Rice NEI is focused on developing new technologies and better models to 1) further our understanding of the brain and central nervous system, 2) record and modulate brain activity, and 3) restore and extend brain function.
The Rice Neuroengineering Initiative is driven by translational research. The 23 core faculty, 18 Rice-affiliate faculty, and 15 TMC-affiliate faculty, along with the proximity of the NEI to the Texas Medical Center, enable dynamic, ongoing research and development of engineered technologies. NEI faculty also mentor 100+ students in neuroengineering labs, including majors in Applied Physics, Bioengineering, Electrical and Computer Engineering, Materials Science and Nanoengineering, Mechanical Engineering, and Neuroscience. Together, our researchers collaborate in an open 25,000-sq-ft. space in the Bioscience Research Collaborative and maintain a clinical outpatient Center for Neural Systems Restoration (CNSR) in partnership with Houston Methodist.
The Rice Neuroengineering Initiative is a co-host of one of the only neuroengineering-focused conferences in the U.S. In partnership with the Georgia Institute of Technology, the annual InterfaceNeuro conference brings together neuroengineers, neuroscientists, neurosurgeons, and neurotechnology industry leaders for two days of sessions, panel discussions, and networking events focused on global brain research and innovation. Past conferences have hosted between 170 and 200 in-person attendees. The NEI also hosts “Engineering Minds,” a distinguished lecture series and a summertime “NeuroEngineering Research in Development Series” (NERDS), aimed at featuring graduate and postdoctoral neuro-researchers from across the Texas Medical Center.
The Rice Neuroengineering Initiative is one pillar of the Rice Brain Institute (RBI), a hub at Rice University for more than 65 engineering, neuroscience, cognitive science, ethics, and policy faculty who are reimagining how we understand, protect, and heal the human brain. Together with the Rice Neuroscience Initiative and the Brain and Society Initiative, the RBI’s strategic mission is to develop novel interventions based on the most advanced brain science to both treat and prevent brain disorders, and to deploy these interventions for the benefit of society.
Website: https://neuroengineering.rice.edu/
Sources: Behnaam Aazhang, Rice Neuroengineering Faculty Director; Hunter Capoccioni, Rice Neuroengineering Program Administrator
Last Updated: April 2026