GSOC 2026 Project #24 : Improvements to BrainBrowser for neuroimaging visualization

GSoC
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Mentors: Natacha Beck, Bryan Caron <bryan.caron@mcgill.ca>, Pierre Rioux

Skill level: Intermediate - Advanced

Required skills: Javascript; experience with version control systems (i.e. git) and team-based development methodologies; good understanding of the Linux operating system and development in a Linux environment

Time commitment: Part time or full time (350 hours)

About: BrainBrowser is an open source JavaScript visualization library that allows for real-time manipulation and analysis of 3D imaging data within a web browser. The BrainBrowser library is lightweight and highly performant, built to provide easy-to-use, powerful, on-demand visualization of remote datasets. BrainBrowser leverages modern web technologies such as WebGL, HTML5 and Web Workers, to visualize 3D surface and volumetric neuroimaging data in any modern web browser without requiring any browser plugins. BrainBrowser's integration into the standardized web platform also allows users to consider using 3D data visualization in novel ways, such as for data distribution, data sharing and dynamic online publications. BrainBrowser is already being used in major online platforms including CBRAIN, LORIS and Brainlife, among others. More information about BrainBrowser can be found at https://brainbrowser.cbrain.mcgill.ca and GitHub - aces/brainbrowser: Web-based visualization tools for neurological data. · GitHub.

Aims: The objective of the project is to update the BrainBrowser visualization library in a number of key areas, increasing performance and providing additional feature richness based upon community requests. The contribution would particularly focus on updating BrainBrowser’s dependencies to include bug fixes, feature and performance updates associated with the three.js library. The project is expected to resolve known transparency issues with the BrainBrowser SurfaceViewer when removing some shapes, and would therefore be a valuable outcome for the neuroscientific research community that rely on BrainBrowser for their visualization needs.

Website: https://brainbrowser.cbrain.mcgill.ca and GitHub - aces/brainbrowser: Web-based visualization tools for neurological data. · GitHub

Tech keywords: Javascript, visualization, imaging, CBRAIN

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Hello @natacha-beck and @bryan.caron,

My name is Tushar Jamdade, and I am currently a pre-final year B.Tech student at Vishwakarma Institute of Information Technology (VIIT), Pune, India.

I recently came across the BrainBrowser project for GSoC 2026 and found it very interesting, as it aligns closely with my interests in neuroimaging data and web-based visualization technologies.

Previously, I was a Google Summer of Code 2025 contributor, where I worked on a Dockerized R/Shiny application for biomedical data analysis using PFB-formatted AVRO files.

Through this experience, I gained strong experience in open-source collaboration, version control workflows, and working effectively with distributed teams across time zones.

In addition, I have also contributed to Neurobagel, which is also a McGill University based organization. There, I worked on several issues and contributed multiple merged PRs, primarily improving the annotation tool and query tool, including bug fixes and feature enhancements.

I have now completed drafting my GSoC proposal for the BrainBrowser project and was wondering if there is any way mentors review proposals or provide feedback on the technical approach before submission.

Thank you for your time, and I would greatly appreciate any guidance.

Best regards,
Tushar Jamdade
tusharnjamdade@gmail.com
Tusharjamdade