Khai Minh Pham, 1995 Alumnus (Vietnam)

My entire career has been directly linked to my studies at Sorbonne University. After starting my medical studies there, I quickly realised that a computer could help doctors make sure they didn't miss any diagnoses from among almost 10,000 diseases. This led me to study computer science at the same time and to pursue a doctorate in Artificial Intelligence at the same university.

My thesis, ‘A unified approach to cognition’, gave rise to ‘macro-connectionism’, a multi-agent system that merges knowledge and reasoning to enable multi-reasoning. I have applied this technology in my first AI company and now in ThinkingNode.ai, where it models the human cell to predict and understand cellular responses to drugs.

Several teachers shaped my path. Professor Alain Carpentier, the renowned cardiac surgeon and inventor of the artificial heart valve, believed in me and encouraged me to push my research further. Professor Françoise Soulie-Fogelman introduced me to artificial neural networks, opening my eyes to their possibilities. Professor Patrick Gallinari, ever-smiling, instilled confidence in us and was always ready to help. I also greatly admired Professor Jean-François Perrot: his lectures, especially on computer science, felt like captivating stories.

Finally, Professor Jean-Gabriel Ganascia, my thesis supervisor, supported me despite my unconventional approach to AI. He helped me structure my thesis, which became the basis for the technology I still use today. Thirty years later, I'm still discovering the implications.

Thank you to Jean-Gabriel, and thank you to all the professors who shared a little of themselves to help us become what we are today.

So many memories to share and so many possibilities to explore! The alumni network brings together people with extraordinary backgrounds and very diverse career trajectories: it is a unique opportunity to rediscover this richness, to reconnect with the university and to find out what everyone is doing now.