Dr Nikitas Koussis is a dynamic early-career researcher (ECR) based at the Mark Hughes Foundation Centre for Brain Cancer Research, University of Newcastle, Australia. He am passionate about harnessing advanced machine learning and computational imaging to transform our understanding of brain tumours and drive personalised treatment strategies.

As a proud Gamilaraay man, he is deeply committed to embedding Indigenous Data and Indigenous Knowledge into digital health and AI. Trust and transparency in the benefits that digital health can provide are paramount to real-world translation and robust improvement of clinical outcomes.

He began my research career at QIMR Berghofer, where I worked as a Research Assistant recruiting and scanning participants for epilepsy and aging studies. Witnessing the profound impact of neurological disorders and the limitations of conventional imaging ignited my commitment to developing novel computational tools that better characterise and predict disease progression.

His PhD in Psychology (2024) focused on multi-modal computational and imaging approaches to schizophrenia, equipping me with expertise in data integration, statistical modeling, and high-dimensional image analysis. Building on this foundation, I transitioned to brain cancer research, where I now lead projects to predict treatment response and molecular markers from imaging data.

To ensure cultural safety and data sovereignty in medical AI, he established the Indigenous Digital Health Advisory Committee at the University of Newcastle. This committee—comprised of Elders, community leaders, and digital health experts—advises on best practices, develop policies around Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property (ICIP), and embed data sovereignty principles into every stage of algorithm and product development.