Developing a Software Ecosystem for Behavioral Analysis: Meet Ecodylic Science

What if we could decode animal behavior with the power of AI – and unlock new insights for neuroscience and mental health research?

Ecodylic Science, a Max Planck start-up project founded by Jacob Davidson and Ahmed El Hady at the Max Planck Institute for Animal Behavior, is building exactly that: a comprehensive software ecosystem that makes complex behavioral data analysis accessible, scalable, and scientifically powerful by integrating multiple state-of-the-art tools.

Their mission? To accelerate AI-driven discoveries in animal collective behavior and pave the way for improved preclinical research in neuropsychiatric drug development.

After joining the MAX!mize Bootcamp in February 2025, they successfully completed Phase 1 and are now advancing into Phase 2 of the program – ready to expand, validate, and prepare their technology for real-world applications.

We interviewed them and gained many exciting insights. Enjoy reading!

Bridging Academic Research & Industry

What real-world problem in research or industry are you solving, and how?

Ecodylic Science: "The problem we're solving is this: behavioral data is everywhere, but gaining useful insights from it remains challenging. Specifically, we don't have standardized, quantitative metrics for collective and social behavior – including how neuropsychiatric drugs affect these behaviors. Current standardized tests – isolating animals in unnatural environments – are increasingly recognized as insufficient for pre-clinical drug development.

We're building a streamlined AI-driven pipeline that examines social and collective behavior and can be used to study drug effects. This accelerates discovery for academics while adding a unique tool to industry's preclinical testing toolkit."

Why is this the right moment for your solution? What is your USP?

Ecodylic Science: "Now is the right moment because collective behavior research is gaining tremendous traction, but most software being developed by academics isn't designed for translational use – tools are often incompatible, difficult to use, and lack long-term support. At the same time, regulatory shifts around psychedelic drugs highlight an area where these tools are needed: compounds with complex effects on behavior that require more sensitive testing approaches than traditional methods provide.

Our approach is to make cutting-edge research tools accessible and easier to use while maintaining the breadth of innovation that industry alone can't achieve – combining the best of both worlds for translational behavioral research."

The founders are developing an AI-powered behavioral analysis software that bridges academic research and industry workflows, aiming to enhance preclinical testing for neuropsychiatric drug discovery.

Therefore, the team is embracing an open-science approach: providing research tools freely to the academic community while building strategic collaborations with partners in pharmaceutical drug testing and related industries.

Can you share a concrete example of how your software might be used in a laboratory or pharmaceutical setting?

Ecodylic Science: "We're already collaborating with the Ernst Strüngmann Institute, where researchers are studying the effects of psilocybin on mice. Groups of mice are filmed, and our software tracks and identifies individual animals, analyzes their movements and interactions, and outputs social behavioral metrics. This type of analysis helps researchers understand not just whether a drug is having an effect, but how it's influencing social behavior over extended timescales—insights that traditional testing methods can't capture."

The People Behind the Vision

Jacob and Ahmed bring together deep expertise in collective behaviour. Their shared passion for understanding animal behavior and translating scientific innovation into real-world impact forms the foundation of Ecodylic Science.

How did you find each other – and what connects you in your drive behind Ecodylic Science?

What personal experiences or observations motivated you to push this mission forward every day?

Ecodylic Science: "We met in 2016 at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, at the Summer School for Methods in Computational Neuroscience. We both shared an interest in using quantitative methods and mathematical models to understand behavior in more natural environments – at the time Jacob was working with ant colonies in the field, and Ahmed with trained rodents in controlled settings.

What truly connects us is this drive to take technology out of academia and apply it to solve real-world problems, particularly in accelerating drug testing. We share common values about how research should bridge to applications, and we're both motivated by seeing the gap where innovative tools are developed but then abandoned after funding cycles end. We want to build something with lasting impact."

Phase 1: Building Foundations & First Breakthroughs

During Phase 1 of MAX!mize, the team expanded and built foundational elements of the software platform. A key milestone: their ongoing collaboration with the Ernst Strüngmann Institute, analyzing the effects of psilocybin on animal group behavior – a use case with potential applications in drug testing. 

Additionally, through their participation in the MAX!mize Incubator, the team gained insights from many topics covered in the six-month curriculum. From team development, financial planning, and business modeling to customer definition, the two future sciencepreneurs acquired a range of skills essential for their continued journey.

Beyond these entrepreneurial skills, they also took away a crucial insight into the next phase: the ability to clearly explain our unique value proposition and key use cases is more valuable than a complex feature list.

Because with every new learning and deeper understanding, perspectives can shift and allow for a more nuanced view on the challenges ahead, there is one more question, that we asked the team:

What unexpected challenges did you face during Phase 1, and how did you overcome them?

Ecodylic Science: "The most significant unexpected challenge was software licensing. It might sound mundane, but it's actually fundamental to our mission of bridging academic research and industry. We knew there would be complexity, but the extent of navigating different licenses and their implications when transitioning from research to startup became a major focus.

We overcame this by working closely with Max Planck Innovation and our startup coach, learning from successful models like Ultralytics, and are going forward with a clear licensing strategy that supports both our open-science values and business sustainability."

Phase 2: Towards Market Readiness

As they enter Phase 2, the focus shifts to product maturation, real-world validation, and establish an early user base. Expanding into new research collaborations and industry pilots will help refine the platform and prepare for a successful market launch.

Do you have any specific examples? What concrete steps are you taking in Phase 2 to validate your platform and gain initial users or industry partners?

Ecodylic Science: "We're expanding research collaborations that serve as both validation opportunities and demonstrations of the platform's capabilities. This is supported by our dual licensing model – free for academic and research use, paid for industry applications – which allows us to build an initial user base while establishing a sustainable business model.

We've also started reaching out to industry partners. We have a visit scheduled with Boehringer Ingelheim to present our research and learn more about the specific applications they're pursuing in behavioral testing. These direct conversations help us ensure the platform addresses real industry needs and workflows."

Ecodylic Science: The Name Behind the Mission

Names often tell a story of their own, offering a glimpse into the vision, values, and inspiration behind a project. They can capture the essence of a mission, hint at the challenges being tackled, or reflect the unique perspective of the founders – all in just a few words.

How did you come up with the name Ecodylic Science, and what meaning does it hold for your mission?

Ecology + Psychedelic = Ecodylic.

Ecodylic Science: "The "eco" represents natural behavior and system concepts – core elements of the analysis tools we're developing. It also reflects that we're building a software ecosystem that integrates multiple tools.

The "dylic" represents psychedelic drugs – a growing research area with potential applications in neuropsychiatric treatments, where sophisticated analytical approaches are needed to understand complex drug effects."

Behavioral Analysis – Looking Ahead

With a growing ecosystem, a sharpened vision, and ambitious scientific and commercial goals, Ecodylic Science is well on its way to transforming behavioral analysis across research and industry.

What excites you most about the next phase of your journey?

Ecodylic Science: "Deploying the software ecosystem and building our collaboration networks. As engineers, we genuinely enjoy building tools, but what's really motivating is the feedback we're getting from colleagues. Researchers keep telling us, "It would be so helpful if these behavior analysis tools were easier to use," or "Getting these programs to work together was such a pain." This validates that we're developing something the community genuinely needs.

We're also excited about learning entirely new ways of thinking by bridging academia and industry – it's a fresh intellectual challenge after years focused purely on research."

Once more, the Max Planck community proves that world-class research can do more than deepen knowledge — it can shape a better future. We look forward to seeing Ecodylic Science grow – and to the breakthroughs that lie ahead for behavioral AI and neuroscience innovation. Stay tuned – this is a team you’ll want to keep an eye on.

Want to write your own science-to-start-up success story and turn research into innovation?

Become part of our community of researchers, innovators, and founders.

Apply now – we’d love to hear your idea.

MORE INFORMATION