Rufus Mitchell-Heggs is the Co-founder & Chief Scientific Officer of Connectome - a neurotechnology company transforming how we understand and optimise the human brain.

Connectome’s mission is to make advanced brain insights accessible to everyone, starting with a non-invasive scan, and over time building the world’s largest longitudinal brain dataset.

In this episode, we discuss how Rufus and his team are focused on:

1. Only providing metrics that people can act on

2. The surprising customer segment raving about this technology

3. Balancing the tension between ‘moving fast and breaking things’ with ‘doing things properly’

You will also get to see Rufus demoing the headset himself!

If you’d like to participate in Connectome’s upcoming:

• Study at Imperial College London, you can sign up to their waitlist here.

• Round of fundraising, feel free to reach out to Rufus directly on LinkedIn.

Access the MindTech Matrix⁠ - see where Connectome sits on the first and only map of mind health technology startups organised by the problem they’re solving and the solution they’re building.

Links mentioned in the podcast episode:

• ⁠Neurotechnology Funding Snapshot (2024)⁠

• ⁠40% of Dementia Cases are Preventable⁠

• ⁠Biomarkers: What Makes One Great?⁠

• ⁠It Takes an Average of 17 Years for Evidence to Change Practice⁠

Professor Dasha Nicholls leads the Child and Adolescent Mental Health research team in the Division of Psychiatry at Imperial College London. Her team’s research improves understanding of and interventions for children and young people with eating disorders and those living at higher weight.

This episode stands out as a special one to me, given the career path that Professor Nicholls has forged - rooted in academic rigour and co-production.

In this episode, we discuss:

1. The competing messages from the obesity epidemic and the mental health epidemic
2. Emotional and behavioural regulation as a transdiagnostic factor in mental health
3. Technology’s ability to recognise variations in mood and tailor behavioural science techniques to improve self-care

• ⁠Access the MindTech Matrix⁠⁠ - see where each startup sits on the first and only map of mind health technology startups organised by the problem they’re solving and the solution they’re building.

Neurodivergence can be a superpower if supported appropriately. In fact, 40-50% of founders are neurodivergent, indicating its potential for creativity and innovation. However, many are held back by the challenges that come with it.

Steph Hamill is solving this problem as the Co-Founder of Divergence Supplements. Their lead product, Gamma Focus, is the first natural superblend specifically formulated to support the needs of divergent minds.

Steph began her career in marketing, business development, and innovation. She now exclusively applies this expertise to making a social impact, such as in her role as senior entrepreneur-in-residence and MBA faculty for Oneday, an EdTech accelerator that supports entrepreneurs in launching and scaling their businesses. She has personally mentored over 250 founders.

Steph was also the first investor for Mettle - the first mental fitness toolkit for men - which featured on MindTech as our very first episode.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Steph’s personal experience of being treated for neurodivergence, which gave her the insight to create a thriving business in this space

• Redefining neurodivergence and unleashing its advantages

• Facilitating community with conversational AI

Steph is currently writing a book on neurodivergent entrepreneurs. So, if you are a neurodivergent entrepreneur, you can reach out to Steph on LinkedIn.

Access the MindTech Matrix - the first map of mental health technology startups organised by the problem they’re solving and the solution they’re building.

Discover insights & tools for your mind at ⁠The Mind, Explored.⁠