Nicolas Ducheneaut

Nicolas Ducheneaut is a seasoned research scientist and software engineer with over 20 years of experience specializing in combining data science with insights from sociology and psychology to gain a deeper understanding of human behavior.

His extensive research has greatly influenced the design of various computer systems, spanning from traditional desktop to modern mobile and web applications, leading to 23 pending U.S. patents and over 50 published academic articles.

Notably, Nicolas has been at the forefront of leveraging large-scale, server-side data to model user behavior within video games. His groundbreaking PlayOn project at Xerox PARC conducted a monumental study on user behavior in World of Warcraft, observing over 500,000 players for 5 years, which has significantly impacted both video game design and business strategies.

Having translated his research insights into practical recommendations, Nicolas has held key roles at renowned organizations like Ubisoft, where he served as the Director of Gamer Behavior Research, and PARC as a Principal Scientist and Senior Member of the Research Staff.

Presently, Nicolas Ducheneaut is the co-founder and technical lead of Quantic Foundry, a company dedicated to assisting game developers in aligning analytics with game design to enhance player engagement and retention.

His academic journey includes a Ph.D. in Information Management and Systems from the University of California, Berkeley, an M.Sc. in Organization Science from Université de Montréal - HEC Montréal, and a Diplome Ecole de Commerce in Finance from ESSCA Ecole de Management.