Professor David Grayden is a leader in interdisciplinary research, driving innovation in neural interfaces and more broadly in biomedical engineering. His leadership has directly contributed to four highly successful start-up companies, that are improving the lives of people with neurological disabilities and with epilepsy. He has contributed to the development of the cochlear implant and the bionic eye, with patents in both fields. He mentors young people in developing their own startup entities through the hallmark BioDesign Innovation course, with 15 companies formed to date.