Daniel Ari Friedman, PhD — AI Researcher, Consultant & Educator | Active Inference · Bayesian Modeling

About

Daniel Ari Friedman is a multidisciplinary researcher, educator, and artist working at the intersection of biology, cognitive science, philosophy, complex systems, and computational modeling. As President and co-founder of the Active Inference Institute — a 501(c)(3) non-profit — he leads an open science community dedicated to learning, teaching, and applying Active Inference.

His research spans from the molecular neuroscience of ant colonies to theoretical frameworks for consciousness, conflict resolution, and cognitive security, complemented by artistic contributions including hundreds of pen-and-ink drawings and pioneering NFT art on the Ethereum blockchain.

He holds a PhD in Ecology & Evolution from Stanford University (advisor: Deborah M. Gordon), completed an NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship at UC Davis, and currently teaches Biology at College of the Redwoods. He is available for consulting, tutoring, speaking, and research collaboration worldwide.

Research Domains

Eight interconnected areas spanning biology, AI, security, philosophy, and art

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Entomology & Social Insects

Harvester ants, collective behavior, dopamine regulation of foraging, brain gene expression. Cell, iScience, Communications Biology.

20 papers

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Active Inference & FEP

CEREBRUM, GNN, federated inference, Thoughtseeds, Bayesian modeling. With Karl Friston et al. Entropy, Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews.

19 papers

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Cognitive Security

COGSEC.org, P3IF, narrative security, ATLAS. 3 books: IRT-20, NIM-21, CAT-22. Cognitive Integrity Framework.

19 papers · 3 books

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Art, Philosophy & Synergetics

William Blake, Buckminster Fuller, quadray/IVM math, Partner Pen Play. Curio Cards NFTs on Ethereum.

13 papers

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Computational Frameworks

Python, Rust, Go, TypeScript, Julia. AI-native workspaces (codomyrmex), steganography, research templates.

46+ repos

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Genetics & Biomedicine

Honey bee evolution, nuclear structure, gene expression variation, Ehrlichial infection mechanisms.

9 papers

Selected Publications

Highlights from 107 publications across 8 research domains

Federated inference and belief sharingNeurosci. & Biobehav. Rev., 202445 cites

Active Inferants: An Active Inference Framework for Ant Colony BehaviorFront. Behav. Neurosci., 202141 cites

Of woodlice and men: A Bayesian account of cognition, life and consciousnessALIUS Bulletin, 201888 cites

Gene expression variation in brains of harvester ant foragersCommun. Biol., 202031 cites

CEREBRUM: Case-Enabled Reasoning Engine with Bayesian RepresentationsZenodo, 2025—

A variational synthesis of evolutionary and developmental dynamicsPhys. Life Rev., 2023—

Shared protentions in multi-agent Active InferenceEntropy, 2024—

📚 All 107 Publications 📊 Google Scholar 🆔 ORCID Profile

Visual Art & NFTs

Pioneering NFT artist on the Ethereum mainnet since May 9, 2017

🎨 Curio Cards — First Art NFTs on Ethereum

Three pen drawings (Cards 24, 25, 26) from a collection of 30 cards by 7 artists · Predates CryptoPunks by ~6 weeks · Christie's sale: $1.2M (393 ETH)

#24

Complexity

333 copies · Geometric fields inspired by brains & ant colonies

#25

Passion

222 copies · Rhythmic patterns on complexity & education

#26

Rarest Card

106 copies · Last sale: 17.9 ETH (>$44,000)

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Christie's Auction

Oct 1, 2021 · First ETH auction at Christie's · $1.2M (393 ETH)

942 pen-and-ink drawings (10–20 hrs each) exploring science, consciousness, and complex systems. Published in Taschen's "On NFT" (2024).

🖼 Browse Full Gallery (942 Works) 🎨 Curio Cards 🏛 Christie's Lot 📷 Flickr Archive

Media & Appearances

Podcasts, conferences, published interviews, courses, and press

Active Inference Journal — 500+ videos on Active Inference

Hosted & produced by Friedman · Livestreams, study groups, guest lectures, symposia

Personal YouTube — 200+ livestreams

Pen drawings, Synergetics explorations, paper read-throughs, collaborative discussions

Beyond Dichotomy — "From Ants to Active Inference"

Andrea Hiott · Love & Philosophy

Making Sense of Complexity — Ep. 1: Ant Behavior & Complexity

George Gantz · Transistor

The Adam McBride Show — "The Rarest NFT" — Curio Cards

Apple Podcasts

Rosy Conversation — Interview

rosybvm.com

Wonderfest — Bay Area science education speaker

Wonderfest science events

Systems Processes, Active Inference, and Beyond (2025)

Conference presentation · DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17138223

5th Applied Active Inference Symposium (2025)

AII Symposium abstract book

KuppingerCole EIC 2024 — Active Inference and Identity

European Identity & Cloud Conference · Speaker #3516

BioFirm at Applied Active Inference Symposium 2024

AII Symposium

MathArt Stream #8: William Blake and Active Inference (2024)

Livestream series

Interview: Daniel Dennett — Philosophy of mind, consciousness (2019)

ALIUS Bulletin

Interview: Robert Sapolsky — Free will, determinism (2022)

ALIUS Bulletin

Interview: Timothy Hanks — Decision neuroscience (2020)

ALIUS Bulletin

Denise Holt — "Active Inference: Pioneering a New Era of AI" (2024)

Features Friedman & Active Inference Institute

Curio Cards / Medium — "Decentralized Beauty: NFT Art and Ants"

2021 feature article

NFT Archaeology — Curio Cards as first art NFTs on Ethereum

Historical timeline entry (May 9, 2017)

Teaching & Education

University courses, online courses, and Active Inference Institute programs

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BIOL-1: General Biology

College of the Redwoods (Fall 2025–). GitHub

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BIOL-8: Human A&P

College of the Redwoods (Fall 2025–). GitHub

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AII Textbook Group

7 cohorts through 2024. Deep study of the Active Inference textbook (Parr, Pezzulo, Friston).

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AII Programs

Internship (since 2022), Fellows Program (5 fellows by Nov 2024), Mentorship Program (2024).

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Communication for Remote Teams

Udemy course on distributed team collaboration.

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700+ Livestreams

500+ Active Inference Journal sessions + 200+ personal YouTube livestreams on research & art.

Connect & Collaborate

Available for consulting, tutoring, speaking, and research collaboration

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Research Consulting

Active Inference · Bayesian modeling · Computational biology · Cognitive security · Multi-agent systems

Get in Touch

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Tutoring & Mentorship

Active Inference fundamentals · Python/Rust AI frameworks · Scientific writing · Bayesian methods

Get in Touch

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Speaking & Workshops

Conference keynotes · Team workshops on AI/ML · Course development · Institutional training

Get in Touch

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Research Collaboration

Joint publications · Framework co-development · Grant partnerships · Open-source contributions

Get in Touch

📧 Daniel@ActiveInference.Institute · danielarifriedman@gmail.com

📚 Bibliography 💻 Software 👤 Profile 🤝 Collaborators 🎥 Media 🔗 All Links