Tiago Gräf is a dynamic scientist who began his academic journey studying biomedicine at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul in Porto Alegre. He then relocated to Florianópolis to pursue his master’s and doctoral degrees in biotechnology and biosciences at the Federal University of Santa Catarina. During his doctoral studies, Gräf spent time at the Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium, and subsequently traveled to South Africa for his post-doctoral work. Upon his return to Brazil he took up an appointment as adjunct professor at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. He is a public health researcher at Fiocruz/Bahia, where his studies focus on virology, evolution, and epidemiology. Despite living near the sea for many years, Gräf prefers hiking in the mountains over surfing. Married to a journalist and a cat parent, Gräf balances his investigations into viral outbreaks and pandemics with his love for music, often finding time to play his double bass and guitar.