Professor Mendonça, Coordinator of Portugal’s strategic partnerships with Carnegie Mellon University, MIT and The University of Texas at Austin, joins Pedro Oliveira, Dean of Nova SBE, for a conversation on the contribution of international academic collaboration to Portugal’s scientific and technological development.

Throughout the discussion, he highlights the role these partnerships have played in areas ranging from research internationalization and technology transfer to entrepreneurship and connections with industry. He also reflects on the importance of having invested early in scientific fields that have since become increasingly relevant.

The conversation provides useful context on the broader evolution of Portugal’s partnerships with U.S. universities and the environment in which the UT Austin Portugal Program has developed since its establishment in 2007.

The post José Manuel Mendonça reflects on the impact of Portugal–US strategic partnerships appeared first on UT Austin Portugal Program.

The UT Austin Portugal Program has selected nine Ph.D. students to undertake extended research internships at The University of Texas at Austin as part of its 2026 In-Residency Ph.D. Research Internships initiative.

Selected through the Program’s Call for Expressions of Interest, the students will begin their research stays between September 1 and December 31, 2026, spending between six and twelve months at UT Austin while advancing research directly connected to their doctoral work in Portugal.

The new cohort represents an important step in expanding doctoral engagement between Portuguese higher education institutions and UT Austin. By providing researchers with an extended period in Austin, the initiative creates the conditions for sustained scientific collaboration, access to UT Austin research environments and expertise, and closer interaction between doctoral researchers and faculty on both sides of the partnership.

Six institutions, three strategic research areas

The nine selected students are affiliated with Instituto Superior Técnico, NOVA University of Lisbon, the University of Coimbra, the University of Lisbon, the University of Minho, and the University of Porto.

Their research plans align with three of the UT Austin Portugal Program’s strategic scientific areas:

• Clean Energy: 1 researcher
• Nanotechnologies: 3 researchers
• Space–Earth Technologies: 5 researchers

The selected work plans span fields including energy and materials engineering, pharmaceutical sciences, civil engineering, geoinformatics, electrical and computer engineering, and space-related research.

Each participant will work with a faculty advisor at UT Austin while maintaining the connection with their doctoral supervisor and research institution in Portugal. This dual research environment is intended to support the development of their Ph.D. work while strengthening links between research groups in Portugal and Texas.

Meet the 2026 Cohort

Their UT Austin advisors represent research groups across the Cockrell School of Engineering, College of Liberal Arts, College of Natural Sciences, and School of Human Ecology, providing access to different scientific environments and expertise throughout the University.

The In-Residency Ph.D. Research Internships add a dedicated doctoral pathway to the UT Austin Portugal Program’s mobility activities. Through longer research stays and direct engagement with UT Austin faculty, the initiative strengthens advanced research training while creating new opportunities for scientific relationships between Portuguese institutions and UT Austin to develop over time.

Meet the 2026 cohort and learn more about their research, Portuguese supervisors, and UT Austin advisors.

Meet the 2026 Cohort

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Held on July 15 and 16 at the Lisbon Congress Centre, the event marked the first major national gathering organized by the newly established Agency for Research and Innovation, AI². Under the theme “Preparing for the Future,” it brought together researchers, higher education institutions, companies, entrepreneurs, policymakers, and representatives of civil society to discuss Portugal’s future research and innovation priorities.

The event received 2,350 registrations and was structured around 20 thematic sessions developed from 206 proposals submitted by the scientific and innovation community.

International partnerships as part of a wider national strategy

The UT Austin Portugal Program participated in the first-day parallel session “International Partnerships for Excellence.”

The session brought together representatives from Teaming centres led by Portuguese institutions and the international partnerships established by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology with Carnegie Mellon University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and The University of Texas at Austin.

These initiatives have contributed to strengthening Portugal’s scientific capacity, supporting international research cooperation, developing talent, and connecting Portuguese institutions with leading international universities and research ecosystems.

The discussion looked beyond the individual achievements of each initiative. It focused on how the experience, knowledge, networks, and institutional capacity developed through international partnerships could contribute to a more coherent national research and innovation strategy.

The UT Austin Portugal Program was represented by its National Directors in Portugal, Rute André and Rui Oliveira.

During the session, Rute André explained how the Program’s fourth phase reflects Portugal’s evolution from building scientific capacity to contributing more actively to international research and innovation agendas.

Phase 4 is structured around an integrated approach connecting collaborative research, advanced training, international mobility, technology transfer, and entrepreneurship. The objective is to create clearer pathways through which knowledge generated by Portuguese researchers can produce scientific, societal, and economic value.

Connecting the different stages of the innovation pathway

The Program’s contribution raised several questions that are central to the future of international partnerships.

How can collaborative research, advanced training, researcher mobility, knowledge valorization, and entrepreneurship be connected more effectively? How can promising technologies and scientific ideas be prevented from being lost between programmes, instruments, or funding cycles? Are additional mechanisms needed to address gaps between research results, validation, and real-world application?

The discussion also considered how the value generated by international partnerships should be assessed. This includes not only the individual results of projects and programmes, but also their collective contribution to institutional capacity, talent development, international positioning, technology transfer, entrepreneurship, and the broader Portuguese research and innovation ecosystem.

For the UT Austin Portugal Program, these questions are particularly relevant to Phase 4. The Program is working to connect research and advanced training with mechanisms that help teams assess the application potential of their work, engage with international markets and stakeholders, and pursue new pathways toward impact.

Building on two decades of international cooperation

José Manuel Mendonça, Chair of the Mission Structure for the FCT International Partnerships, provided historical context on the creation of Portugal’s partnerships with US universities nearly two decades ago, under the leadership of former Minister of Science Mariano Gago.

His contribution highlighted the long-term value generated by these programmes for Portugal’s scientific and innovation system, including the development of highly qualified people, new research collaborations, institutional relationships, and entrepreneurial initiatives.

The participation of CMU Portugal, MIT Portugal, and UT Austin Portugal in the same session also provided an opportunity to consider their combined experience.

Although each partnership has its own scientific priorities, instruments, and institutional relationships, together they represent a substantial body of knowledge on transatlantic cooperation, international mobility, collaborative research, advanced education, and research-based innovation.

From individual initiatives to a national portfolio of excellence

The conclusions published after the event reinforced the importance of treating international partnerships and centres of excellence as part of a broader and more coordinated national strategy.

Among the proposals emerging from the session were the need for longer-term and more diversified commitments, mechanisms that help successful initiatives bridge different funding periods, stronger integration between national and European programmes, and more agile legal and regulatory procedures for large collaborative initiatives.

Participants also discussed the value of creating a national portfolio for scientific internationalization. Such an approach could connect established partnerships, centres of excellence, research infrastructures, companies, and other stakeholders around strategic national and regional challenges.

The session involved 170 participants and 17 pitches, reflecting the scale and diversity of the organizations interested in strengthening Portugal’s international research and innovation position.

For the UT Austin Portugal Program, participation in Encontro Ciência e Inovação 2026 was an opportunity to contribute its experience to this wider discussion and to reaffirm the role of long-term international cooperation in helping Portugal generate knowledge, develop talent, strengthen institutions, and create value from research.

As Phase 4 progresses, the Program will continue working across research, education, mobility, and innovation to connect scientific ambition with the people, mechanisms, and international relationships needed to support lasting impact.

The post UT Austin Portugal at Ciência e Inovação 2026: Connecting international partnerships for greater impact appeared first on UT Austin Portugal Program.

A significant outcome of the UT Austin Portugal Program-supported NanoPower Exploratory Research Project is the creation of NeuroMech Systems, a new venture working at the intersection of advanced sensing, digital medicine, and person-centered healthcare.

Led by Cláudia Lopes, Assistant Researcher at TEMA – Centre for Mechanical Technology and Automation, University of Aveiro, NanoPower focused on mapping neuromuscular activity with high precision. More specifically, the project sought to understand the individual contribution of each motor unit during the assessment of a muscular group and to characterize the spatiotemporal profiles of the Vastus Lateralis and Vastus Medialis muscles.

At the core of the project was a demanding scientific and technological challenge: capturing the real dimension of muscle electrical activity across both time and frequency domains.

To address this, NanoPower explored the development of a high-density surface electromyography sensor array, known as HD-sEMG, built on flexible and biocompatible nano-electrodes powered by triboelectric nanogenerators. These nanogenerators were designed to convert the user’s own biomechanical energy into electricity, enabling real-time and continuous muscle activity assessment without external power sources.

The work laid the foundations for a broader ambition: developing reliable, portable, and non-invasive systems capable of supporting clinical evaluation, rehabilitation, sports performance, and wellness.

Seeing potential beyond the project

For Cláudia Lopes and her partner, Professor Nelson Azevedo, the potential of the solutions being developed was clear from the beginning.

The vision behind NanoPower pointed to integrated systems capable of delivering continuous, real-time monitoring in ways that could support more informed decisions around treatment and rehabilitation. This placed the project at the intersection of cutting-edge research and the emerging field of digital medicine.

That early recognition helped turn NanoPower into more than a research project. It became the starting point for an entrepreneurial journey focused on transforming scientific knowledge into tools that can respond to real clinical and human needs.

Bridging the gap between monitoring and treatment

The creation of NeuroMech Systems was driven by a gap the team identified in the medical devices landscape.

Today, many wearable technologies are already used to monitor physiological parameters across sports, wellbeing, and clinical diagnosis. However, there remains a need for solutions that can dynamically adjust treatment or rehabilitation according to a patient’s real and continuously monitored condition.

NeuroMech Systems was created to respond to that opportunity.

The company is developing biofeedback solutions that do not simply monitor, but actively inform and adapt treatment based on live data. Its mission is to offer reliable, person-centered tools that help close the loop between monitoring and treatment, making healthcare more responsive, more personalized, and more effective.

This mission reflects the complementary backgrounds of its founders. Cláudia Lopes brings a strong research perspective, while Nelson Azevedo contributes direct experience from clinical environments. Together, they are working to develop solutions that are scientifically rigorous, clinically relevant, and grounded in real problems.

The role of the UT Austin Portugal Program

For Cláudia Lopes, the UT Austin Portugal Program helped create the conditions for this outcome by supporting exploratory research on the HD-sEMG sensor array and enabling collaboration with The University of Texas at Austin.

The Program’s support helped advance a technology capable of capturing an often-overlooked spatial dimension of neuromuscular activity. Beyond the project itself, the international partnership with UT Austin accelerated the research and contributed to building the scientific and technological foundations that would later support the team’s entrepreneurial ambitions.

That collaboration opened doors intellectually, strategically, and in terms of future market positioning.

In this sense, NeuroMech Systems stands as a strong example of how Program-supported exploratory research can create the conditions for entrepreneurial pathways, especially when scientific ambition is combined with international collaboration and a clear understanding of real-world needs.

From research to venture creation

Moving from exploratory research to an entrepreneurial initiative required a significant shift in mindset.

For Cláudia Lopes, the transition meant moving from the perspective of researcher and clinician to that of entrepreneur. It required learning a new language: business models, regulatory and bureaucratic requirements, market readiness, timelines, milestones, and communication with stakeholders beyond the academic environment.

The scientific rigor was already part of the work. The challenge was to translate that knowledge into a venture with commercial viability and practical relevance.

This transition also brought unexpected complexity. Academic research and venture creation operate according to different rhythms. In academia, progress is often measured by knowledge generated. In a venture, progress is measured through milestones, market readiness, and real-world outcomes.

Learning to operate across both worlds has been one of the most demanding and important parts of the journey.

Toward adaptive neuromuscular healthcare

For Cláudia Lopes, the creation of NeuroMech Systems represents proof that research can change lives.

It is the moment when scientific ideas begin to move toward tangible impact, with the potential to improve people’s quality of life through solutions born from research.

Looking ahead, NeuroMech Systems is currently developing two prototypes for the treatment of neuromuscular pathologies. One is based on ILIB – Intravascular Laser Irradiation of Blood therapy, while the other focuses on vagal nerve stimulation.

Both prototypes are in the testing phase and are expected to move soon into clinical validation. The team’s goal is to have these devices ready for market entry by the end of next year.

More broadly, NeuroMech Systems aims to help redefine what personalized care can look like in neuromuscular healthcare, moving from reactive treatment toward continuous, data-driven, and adaptive therapy.

By tracing the path from NanoPower to NeuroMech Systems, the UT Austin Portugal Program highlights how exploratory research can create the foundations for innovation with real-world relevance.

It is a story about scientific ambition, international collaboration, and the ability of research to open new possibilities for patients, clinicians, and future healthcare technologies.

The post NeuroMech Systems: Exploratory research to person-centered healthcare innovation appeared first on UT Austin Portugal Program.

Professor Fernanda Leite, Vice President for Research at UT Austin, has assumed the role of Principal Investigator of the UT Austin Portugal Program. Professor Emeritus John G. Ekerdt, who has played a central role in guiding the Partnership, will continue to support the Program as Co-Principal Investigator. Marco Bravo will remain the Program’s Executive Director at UT Austin.

The new appointments have been formally accepted by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology.

Fernanda Leite brings extensive experience in research leadership, international collaboration, and engineering education to her new role. As Vice President for Research at UT Austin, she helps advance the university’s research strategy and supports interdisciplinary collaboration across its academic and scientific community.

Her appointment as Principal Investigator comes as the UT Austin Portugal Program moves forward with Phase 4, strengthening cooperation between Portugal and UT Austin across research, advanced training, mobility, and technology-based innovation.

The Program also expresses its sincere appreciation to John G. Ekerdt for his longstanding leadership and continued commitment to the Partnership. His contribution has been instrumental in reinforcing institutional ties between Portugal and UT Austin and in supporting the Program’s scientific and strategic development across multiple phases.

With Fernanda Leite as Principal Investigator, John G. Ekerdt continuing as Co-Principal Investigator, and Marco Bravo leading the Program’s executive coordination at UT Austin, the updated leadership structure supports continuity while opening a new chapter in the Partnership’s development.

The corresponding changes can also be found on the Program’s Governance page.

The post Fernanda Leite Appointed Principal Investigator of the UT Austin Portugal Program appeared first on UT Austin Portugal Program.

The article focuses on a new study led by researchers at The University of Texas at Austin, exploring a method to map fast tissue dynamics using long camera exposures and intensity modulation. The work was recently published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences under the title “Mapping fast tissue dynamics with long camera exposures via intensity modulation.”

The study has received wider media attention, including coverage by UT News and Medical Xpress, for its potential relevance to brain blood-flow imaging during surgery.

By flagging this story, the UT Austin Portugal Program highlights how research developed within Program-supported collaborations can continue to generate scientific relevance and open new directions beyond the original project timeline.

The Extremed project is part of the Program’s Phase 3 portfolio of industry-driven research, reflecting the Program’s role in supporting collaborative research with scientific, technological, and potential real-world impact.

The post UT Austin research linked to Extremed project featured in new brain blood-flow imaging study appeared first on UT Austin Portugal Program.

Professor Lizy John, from The University of Texas at Austin, recently visited INESC TEC during her stay in Portugal under a Fulbright Specialist Award, with the first project taking place at the University of Porto.

During her visit, Professor John delivered lectures at the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto (FEUP) and met with several INESC TEC research coordinators and researchers at the invitation of Professor Gabriel David, Vice-President of INESC TEC. The UT Austin Portugal Program was also represented at the meeting, reinforcing the Program’s role in strengthening research exchange and institutional collaboration between Portugal and UT Austin.

The visit also connected directly with the Program’s mobility activities. Professor John is currently hosting Afonso Lourenço, a Ph.D. student selected under the 2025 edition of the UT Austin Portugal Program’s Short-Term Research Internships at UT Austin. Afonso’s work on energy-efficient real-time machine learning aligns closely with Professor John’s research on algorithm-hardware co-design, creating a strong basis for scientific dialogue and mentorship during his research stay at UT Austin.

While in Porto, Professor John also had the opportunity to meet with Afonso’s advisor, Professor Emeritus João Gama, senior researcher at INESC TEC’s Laboratory of Artificial Intelligence and Decision Support, as well as with Mushahid Hussain, a scholar from last year’s UT Austin Portugal mobility cohort, and his advisor Ana Aguiar, from FEUP.

By bringing together UT Austin faculty, Portuguese researchers, Ph.D. students, and former Program scholars, the visit illustrates how international mobility can generate value beyond the research stay itself. It creates opportunities for knowledge exchange, strengthens academic and institutional links, and helps build continuity between individual mobility experiences and broader collaborative networks.

Through initiatives such as the Short-Term Research Internships at UT Austin, the UT Austin Portugal Program continues to contribute in advanced research training, international collaboration, and the development of scientific connections between Portugal and The University of Texas at Austin.

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His participation highlights the UT Austin Portugal Program’s commitment to international collaboration, knowledge exchange, and capacity-building in strategic technological areas.

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Can you imagine sailing the high seas of the Atlantic Ocean to the frigid waters of Greenland?  This summer, about 40 graduate students and faculty from Portugal, Norway, Greenland, and the U.S. are spending three weeks on the Staatsraad Lehmkuhl, sailing from Ponta Delgada on Sao Miguel Island in the Azores to Nuuk, Greenland.  The vessel is a three-masted barque, built in Germany in 1914 and now based in Bergen, Norway.  Although the ship is majestic, the accommodation is spartan – just hammocks in a shared space below decks. However, these students eagerly joined the ship in Ponta Delgada after a three-day workshop on the campus of the University of the Azores to begin their oceanographic voyage.

The post One Ocean Expedition: Sailing to Greenland for Science and Connection appeared first on UT Austin Portugal Program.

A historic moment in Portugal’s space history has Longhorn finger(hoof)prints all over it.

After nearly a decade of planning, the first space infrastructure in Portugal was officially licensed for operation in late 2025. This monumental development received key support from the UT Austin Portugal Program, Portugal’s long-standing scientific joint venture with UT, in its early phases.

From Recommendation to Reality

In 2017, the Portuguese government commissioned a team of researchers from UT Austin and The University of Texas at El Paso to lead a feasibility study for a spaceport in the country’s Azores Islands. This past August, Portugal’s National Space Authority (ANACOM) officially granted the Portuguese Atlantic Spaceport Consortium (ASC) a license to operate space activities in Malbusca, located on the southernmost island of Santa Maria. It will be the first space infrastructure to be operated on national territory, marking a major development in the country’s path to autonomy in space exploration.

Read the full article by Summerlyn Murray

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