Karel Svoboda

Karel Svoboda (born 1965) is a neuroscientist. His research focuses on the question of how the neural circuits of the brain produce behavior. He has also performed notable work in molecular biophysics, neurotechnology, and neuroplasticity, particularly changes in the brain due to experience and learning. In 2021, he became the Vice President and Executive Director of the Allen Institute for Neural Dynamics.

Education Svoboda was born in 1965 in what is now the Czech Republic. Svoboda received his bachelor's degree in physics from Cornell University. He then studied biophysics at Harvard University and received his Ph.D. in 1994, working with Steven Block and Howard Berg. He was a postdoctoral fellow at Bell Laboratories with Winfried Denk and David Tank. The group also develops experimental methods for studying neural circuits in live animals and in tissues, and is particularly noted for its work in high-resolution optical imaging.

Awards and honors Society for Neuroscience Young Investigator award (2004) Gill Young Investigator Award (2009) Lawrence C. Katz Prize, Duke University (2014) National Academy of Sciences (2015) Grete Lundbeck European Brain Research Prize (2015) (often known as the Brain Prize) by the Lundbeckfonden, a foundation supported by Lundbeck. National Academy of Sciences Pradel Award (2017)