Eight open questions in the computational modeling of higher sensory cortex

•Deep neural networks have driven recent advances in the study of higher sensory cortex.•We discuss key future directions that are enabled by these new modeling techniques.•These ideas represent a convergence of neuroscience, computer science, and psychology.

Propelled by advances in biologically inspired computer vision and artificial intelligence, the past five years have seen significant progress in using deep neural networks to model response patterns of neurons in visual cortex. In this paper, we briefly review this progress and then discuss eight key 'open questions' that we believe will drive research in computational models of sensory systems over the next five years, both in visual cortex and beyond.