Best Startup
At Best Startup UK we track over 130,000 UK startups and over 500,000 people who hold key positions in these companies. We use this directory of startups to highlight top employees, founders and board members we think deserve more appreciation than they are currently getting.
This list showcases the top United Kingdom based CEO’ operating in the Neuroscience space. If you think a CEO’ is missing from this list, feel free to contact our editor on editor@beststartup.co.uk.
The individuals on this list have been included because of exceptional performance in one of the following categories:
- Innovation – Operating as a key part in an extremely innovative business or startup.
- Growth – Operating as a key figure in the growth and upscale of a market leading business or startup.
- Management – Showing exceptional management skills.
- Societal impact – Putting their business on the map for their positive societal or environmental impact.
Our Data – We source our data from OSINT (open source intelligence) and public directories such as Companies House UK, Crunchbase, SemRush and many more. The data from these sources should be treated with a degree of caution and verified yourself.
Joanna Shields
CEO of BenevolentAI
Joanna Shields (Baroness Shields OBE) is a tech industry veteran with a successful track record building some of the world’s best-known companies. Her career spans over 30 years and has focussed on harnessing the power of technology to drive change that improves connectivity, humanity and society. Joanna is currently Chief Executive Officer of BenevolentAI, a world leader in the development and application of artificial intelligence and machine learning to understand the underlying causes of disease, accelerate drug discovery and develop new and more effective medicines. Prior to joining BenevolentAI, Joanna served as the UK’s first Minister for Internet Safety and Security, Under Secretary of State, Special Advisor on the Digital Economy, and Chair & CEO of TechCityUK. Prior to her government service, Joanna held executive roles at Google, Facebook, Bebo/Aol, Decru, RealNetworks, Veon and EFI and served as a non-executive director of the London Stock Exchange Group. Joanna founded WePROTECT.org, a multi-stakeholder global alliance working to protect children from online abuse and exploitation. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the Transatlantic Commission on Election Integrity and the Child Dignity Alliance. She is also a Commissioner on the Oxford Commission on AI & Good Governance (OxCAIGG) and sits on the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) as the UK nominated expert on an AI-enabled COVID response. In November 2020, she was elected Co-Chair of the GPAI Steering Committee and Chair of the GPAI Multi-stakeholder Expert Group Plenary. In 2014, Joanna was appointed OBE for services to digital industries and voluntary service to young people and made a Life Peer of the House of Lords.
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About BenevolentAI, UK House of Lords: BenevolentAI is a developer of artificial intelligence and computational medicine technologies.
Susan Greenfield
Founder & CEO of Neuro-Bio
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About Neuro-Bio: Neuro-Bio is a British pharmaceutical company
Baroness Susan Greenfield
CEO & Founder of Neuro-Bio
Susan Greenfield is a neuroscientist, writer, and broadcaster. She has been awarded 30 Honorary Degrees from British and foreign universities and heads a multi-disciplinary research group exploring novel brain mechanisms linked to neurodegenerative diseases such Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. She is a Senior Research Fellow at Lincoln College, Oxford and has currently co-founded a biotech company developing a novel approach to neurodegenerative disorders (Neuro-Bio Ltd). In addition, she has published a neuroscientific theory of consciousness,’The Private Life of the Brain’ (2003) and developed a keen interest in the impact of modern technologies on how young people think and feel. This was discussed in her book, ‘ID: The Quest for Identity in the 21st Century’ (2008). In 1998 she received the Michael Faraday Medal from the Royal Society, was awarded a CBE in the Millennium New Year’s Honours List and was granted a non-political Life Peerage in 2001. In 2000 she was elected to an Honorary Fellowship of the Royal College of Physicians and in 2007 to an Honorary Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. She was appointed Chancellor of Heriot Watt University in 2005. Further recognition of her work includes L’Ordre National de la Légion d’Honneur from the French Government, and the American Academy of Achievement Golden Plate Award, both received in 2003. Susan was also awarded the Australian Medical Research Society Medal in 2010. In 2011, Susan joined the Advisory Board of the Kusuma School of Biological Sciences at the Indian Institute for Technology, Delhi. In 2012, Susan was offered the Honorary Fellowship of the Institute of Risk Management and also became a Vice Patron of POWER International. Further on in 2012, Susan was selected to serve as the Parliamentary Patron of the Westminster Higher Education Forum, alongside of continuing to be a Parliamentary Patron of the Westminster Education Forum. Continuing through 2012, Susan bacame a Governor of The Florey Institute for Neuroscience and Mental Health and also started to suport the IAB (the International Advisory Board). In January 2014, she was included in the Debrett’s 500, “a recognition of the most influential and inspiring 500 people in Britain.”. Most recently, in July 2014, Susan was awarded as an Honorary Doctorate at Middlesex University.
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About Neuro-Bio: Neuro-Bio is a British pharmaceutical company
Ronan Cunningham
Founder and Chief Executive Officer of BrainWaveBank
Ronan has more than 20 years of experience in advanced engineering and product development. He was one of the founding members of ATA Engineering, an award-winning San Diego-based engineering company specializing in development of innovative hardware and software technologies for the aerospace and defence industries. His roles have included Director of Business Development and Director of New Technology Development. He is an Entrepreneur-in-Residence with the Northern Ireland Science Park. His expertise is in early stage technology development, innovation strategy, and technology commercialisation. He holds an MS in Aeronautics and Astronautics from MIT.
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About BrainWaveBank, Cumulus Neuroscience: BrainWaveBank makes it possible to measure and track brain activity and cognitive performance for anyone, anytime, anywhere.
Damien McDonald
CEO of LivaNova
Damien McDonald is the Chief Executive Officer of LivaNova. Previously, Mr. McDonald served as Chief Operating Officer of LivaNova. Prior to that, he was Group Executive and Corporate Vice President at Danaher Corporation where he led a $1.5-billion group of dental consumables companies. Earlier in his tenure, he was Group President of Kerr where he and his team focused on building a strong research and development pipeline while improving operational performance utilizing the Danaher Business System. Additionally, Mr. McDonald previously led Zimmer’s spine division where he demonstrated his leadership skills, attracting a strong executive team that created a growth trajectory for the business unit. Earlier in his career, he worked with J&J’s Medical Device Franchises, including Ethicon, where he led marketing of the $2.5-billion medical device unit. Mr. McDonald earned an MBA at the Institute for Management Development (IMD) in Lausanne, Switzerland, along with a Master of Science in International Economics from the University of Wales, U.K. He also holds a Bachelor of Economics degree and Bachelor of Pharmacy degree, both from the University of Queensland, Australia. Mr. McDonald is a non-executive director of the regenerative medicine company Avita Medical (ASX:AVH).
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About LivaNova: LivaNova PLC is a global medical technology company built on nearly five decades of experience and a relentless commitment.
