HSE Development Programme until 2030

Researchers at the HSE Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience have studied how the brain responds to audio deepfakes—realistic fake speech recordings created using AI. The study shows that people tend to trust the current opinion of an authoritative speaker even when new statements contradict the speaker’s previous position. This effect also occurs when the statement conflicts with the listener’s internal attitudes. The research has been published in the journal NeuroImage.

An international team, including researchers from HSE University, examined an unusual SARS-CoV-2 sample obtained from an HIV-positive patient. Genetic analysis revealed multiple mutations and showed that the virus had been evolving inside the patient’s body for two years. This finding supports the theory that the virus can persist in individuals for years, gradually accumulate mutations, and eventually spill back into the population. The study's findings have been published in Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology.

The International Laboratory for Digital Transformation in Public Administration staff members Elizaveta Dyakova and Anna Sanina compiled the Index of AI assistants for Public Administration.

Researchers at the HSE AI Research Centre have developed an AI model that opens up new possibilities for the diagnosis and treatment of serious diseases, including brain cancer and neurodegenerative disorders. Using artificial intelligence, the team studied G-quadruplexes—structures that play a crucial role in cellular function and in the development of organs and tissues. The findings have been published in Scientific Reports.

The first year of the project "Internationalization of Companies from Developing Countries: The Role of Intellectual Resources in Response to Exogenous Shocks", implemented in 2025–2027 under the HSE University Joint Basic Research Projects ‘International Academic Cooperation’ competition, has been successfully concluded. The project is carried out by the International Laboratory of Intangible-driven Economy at HSE University in collaboration with Iran University of Science and Technology, under the supervision of Maria Molodchik and Amir Zakeri. All planned commitments for the first year have been fully fulfilled.

An article by laboratory researchers has been published in Progress in Lipid Research (impact factor 14.9), a leading international journal dedicated to research on lipids and metabolism. The paper, “Structure-guided dissection of the genetic variations within human LPA locus and its role in the development of cardiovascular diseases,” examines key genetic factors underlying cardiovascular risk

An international team of researchers, including scholars from HSE University, has discovered that knowledge of a foreign language can improve memory performance and increase automaticity when solving complex tasks. The higher a person’s language proficiency, the stronger the effect. The results have been published in the journal Brain and Cognition.

The neural network analysed nearly a million 12×12 m plots and found that the rate of shrub spread varies from 2.4% to 26.1% per decade, depending on local conditions. The study showed that mature shrubs prefer well-drained slopes, while new colonisation occurs on flatter areas, which opens up opportunities for predicting further shrubification of the Arctic under climate change conditions

Why we make irrational decisions, how the brain responds to fakes, and whether neural networks are capable of thinking—these were the topics discussed by early-career scientists of HSE University during the NAUKA 0+ science festival. The event brought together students and experts from various fields, united by a common goal—to deepen their understanding of the human brain and cognitive technologies.

How can BRICS countries move away from the dollar in international settlements, and what can they do to advance this goal today? These questions were discussed by experts during a round table at HSE University. The event was organised by the Multilateral Strategic Projects Office together with the HSE Faculty of World Economy and International Affairs as part of HSE’s activities within the BRICS Network University and the Joint Basic Research Projects ‘International Academic Cooperation of HSE University.’