European Neurotech Community Assembles at NLF-imec Event

Staff report

For two days this June, the corridors of imec’s headquarters in Leuven, Belgium thrummed with a new kind of energy. The inaugural European edition of the Neurotech Leaders Forum—long a staple in the U.S.—brought together a dynamic mix of entrepreneurs, investors, academics, and strategists to spotlight Europe’s accelerating neurotechnology ecosystem.

Co-hosted by Neurotech Reports and imec, the forum provided a panoramic view of the field: from ultrathin brain implants to platform technologies in bioelectronic medicine, and from wearable neuromodulation to scale-up strategies for crossing the Atlantic. The event’s dual aims were clear—to elevate the visibility of European neurotech innovation and to build bridges for sustainable global growth.

State of the European Neurotech Industry

The conference kicked off with an overview of the European neurotech industry by Neurotech Reports editor James Cavuoto. He pointed out that it would be hard to understand the European market without having an understanding of the global market.

Cavuoto took attendees on a “trip down memory lane,” displaying a neurotech industry timeline over the 25 years that Neurotech Reports has been publishing. Some of the key industry events he mentioned included significant M&A activity such as Boston Scientific’s purchase of Advanced Bionics and S. Jude Medical’s purchase of Advanced Neuromodulation Systems, as well as key regulatory approvals and failed clinical trials in the space. Among the major European neurotech vendors Cavuoto mentioned are LivaNova, MED-EL, Biotronik, Ottobock, Mainstay Medical, and Nyxoah.

Keynote Address

Tim Denison, a professor at Oxford University in the U.K. and a co-founder of Amber Therapeutics. He gave a talk on the rhythms of life and the rhythms of innovation. He posed the question, What’s the missing ingredient?” with respect to neurotech commercialization. He stressed the importance of understanding feed-forward as well as feedback loops in physiological processes.

“Ultimately can we restore physiological behavior in the near term for optimization, and then, with degenerative diseases, can we actually restore rhythms, break the degenerative cycle of sleep and slow disease progression?” he asked. “That’s our aspiration.”

Denison also pointed out the important relationship between scientific discovery and technological innovation, citing as an example, Wall and Melzack’s gate theory of pain in 1965 and Tom Mortimer’s idea to build a spinal cord stimulation system for pain based on that theory a few years later. (Mortimer will have more to say on this topic at the 2025 Neurotech Leaders Forum in San Francisco in November).

Venture Capital Investment

A session devoted to VC investment in neurotechnology featured Diana Saraceni from Panakes Partners, Frank Bulens from imec Xpand, and Josh Schulman from Corundum Neuroscience.

Saraceni said that Panakes invests across multiple geographies and multiple stages, though their sweet spot is rounds A and B. Bulens said that imec Xpand is a $300 million fund with six partners. The VC firm has exclusive agreements with imec but is independently owned. They will invest between €2 and €8 million in the first round. Schulman said that Corundum is part of a larger Japanese investment firm. They invest in early and pre-seed rounds for neuroscience ventures, primarily noninvasive startup.

Saraceni pointed out that implantable firms have an advantage over noninvasive ventures when it get to the reimbursement stage of commercialization. “We take an additional risk there, but the end game favors implantables,” she said. She tries to avoid more crowded areas technology. Bulens pointed out that neurotech firms over growth rates that are two to three times greater that other fields.

The Business of Neuromodulation

A session titled The Business of Neuromodulation, moderated by NBR senior consulting editor Jeremy Koff, focused on what it takes to build a neuromodulation company in today’s environment. Presenting were Lothar Krinke of Adraxe Corp., Frank Desiere of CorTec, and Lorenzo Rossi of Newronika, each offering a compelling window into different business models, technologies, and growth strategies in the space.

Krinke opened the session by highlighting a sobering problem: more than 3 million Americans live with epilepsy, and for roughly one-third of them, medication alone fails. Many existing device-based treatments are invasive and offer inconsistent results. Adraxe aims to change that with a novel seizure-triggered neurostimulation system designed to terminate seizures as they begin.

Desiere presented CorTec’s evolution from a University of Freiburg spin-off to a full-system neurotech development and manufacturing partner serving startups, research centers, and multinational medtech firms globally. CorTec’s value proposition is end-to-end: custom electrodes (grids, cuffs, spinal), hermetic packaging, implantable electronics, and fully integrated systems. They received FDA IDE clearance in 2024 for their flagship product, the CorTec Brain Interchange, a closed-loop BCI capable of both sensing and stimulation with wireless power and data transmission.

Rossi of Newronika offered his view of the next generation of deep brain stimulation. Their AlphaDBS system, which recently obtained CE mark, is an advanced closed-loop DBS platform—designed for minute-by-minute adaptive therapy in Parkinson’s disease and other neurological conditions.

Unlike traditional DBS systems that require manual reprogramming and provide fixed stimulation, AlphaDBS continuously senses brain activity and adjusts stimulation accordingly. Clinical results presented by Rossi showed 2.4 more hours of “good on” time and significantly lower dyskinesia scores compared to conventional DBS, in a randomized blinded crossover trial.

AlphaDBS consists of a rechargeable implantable pulse generator, patient-controlled telemetry, clinician programmer, and cloud-based remote monitoring system. Brain signal data is uploaded via the patient recharge device, enabling real-time tracking and potential AI-based personalization in the future.

Rossi sees Parkinson’s as just the starting point. The system’s platform architecture positions it for expansion into depression, Alzheimer’s, Tourette’s, and traumatic brain injury. Market estimates suggest a €3.6B TAM in Parkinson’s alone.

The panelists emphasized the long runway to commercialization, the need for resilient capital strategies, and the importance of team, timing, and technical proof.

Bridging Worlds: “Inside, Outside, and Through”

One of the most nuanced conversations came during a session titled Inside, Outside, and Through, which explored the evolving interplay between implantable and noninvasive neuromodulation technologies. Ana Maiques of Neuroelectrics, Tracy Laabs of the Wyss Center, and Julien Camisani of ONWARD Medical illuminated the topic through complementary perspectives.

Maiques spoke with characteristic enthusiasm and conviction, presenting Neuroelectrics’ at-home, wearable platform for epilepsy, which combines stimulation and real-time EEG monitoring, underpinned by a sophisticated digital twin model of the brain. She shared the company’s impressive Phase III clinical trial data and reflected on her journey from Barcelona to Boston, highlighting the vital role of regional funding mechanisms and clinical partnerships in scaling noninvasive technologies.

Laabs offered a broader ecosystem view, drawing on her decade of experience at the Wyss Institute for Bio and Neuroengineering. She emphasized the need for robust translational infrastructure to carry research from academic proof-of-concept to viable commercial ventures. In her words, neurotech doesn’t face a single “valley of death,” but a series of them—and crossing each demands different tools, timelines, and talent.

Camisani brought the implantable perspective, outlining ONWARD’s portfolio targeting spinal cord injury, including their minimally invasive “Arc-Ex” system and a pioneering BCI-enabled spinal interface. He described the team’s strategy of starting with rehabilitation centers and expanding to home use, noting that implantables and wearables are not inherently in competition, but rather serve different segments and stages of care.

Collectively, the session framed the future of neurotech not as a binary between implanted and wearable, but as a continuum shaped by user needs, clinical workflows, and technological readiness.

Brain-Computer Interfaces: Leaders of Europe

Later that day, three of Europe’s most ambitious BCI startups took the stage for the BCI Leaders of Europe panel. Nicolas Vachicouras of Neurosoft Bioelectronics, Carolina Aguilar of INBRAIN Neuroelectronics, and Rotem Kopel of ABILITY Neurotech each offered a masterclass in translating deep tech into clinical utility.

Vachicouras detailed Neurosoft’s work on ultra-flexible, stretchable electrodes capable of conforming to the brain’s complex surface geometry—ideal for accessing auditory cortex regions implicated in severe tinnitus. Aguilar gave a sweeping tour of the company’s graphene-based BCI platform, positioning it as a step-change in resolution, charge injection capacity, and longevity. Kopel brought fresh momentum as the CEO of ABILITY Neurotech, a newly spun-out venture from the Wyss Center. Their full-stack BCI is designed for home use and built with a raw-data-first philosophy—transmitting unprocessed broadband signals via a novel optical link.

The panel closed with reflections on the importance of international collaboration and standards. All three companies expressed strong alignment with the goals of IDCI (International Digital Convergence Initiative) and a desire to see harmonized regulatory frameworks—not fragmented continental silos.

Crossing the Pond Bidirectionally

The “Crossing the Pond” session tackled the transatlantic challenge head-on. With manufacturing titans like Cirtec Medical, Micro Systems Technologies, and Osypka on stage, the conversation covered more than just geography—it examined how to build resilient go-to-market strategies amid tightening capital, fragmented reimbursement, and shifting regulatory winds.

Brian Highley of Cirtec recounted the company’s expansion from a boutique machine shop to a global CDMO powerhouse, now with over 2,000 employees. Thorsten Gottsche of Osypka emphasized the value of full-cycle support—from initial prototypes to CE/FDA submission, and on to commercial scaling. Robert Crawford of MST reinforced that sentiment, advocating for modular design platforms to speed regulatory approval and avoid reinventing the wheel.

Entrepreneur Panels

Several neurotech startups gave presentations during three Entrepreneur Panels at the conference. These included Synergia Medical, BrainScape Medical, PathMaker NeuroSystems, WISE, Magnes AG, Salvia BioElectronics, Precisis, ReVision Implant, and Corticale SRL.

Beyond the Podium: Momentum in Every Corner

From the opening remarks by James Cavuoto and imec’s Peter Peumans to the final panel on entrepreneur showcases, the European Neurotech Leaders Forum was more than a conference. It was a signal: Europe is not only a rising player in neurotechnology—it is a co-author of its future.

A more detailed account of this meeting will be available in a special publication for attendees at one of our conferences and to Neurotech Reports subscribers and will also include access to many of the slide presentations and some of the video. Watch for an email from us in the weeks ahead.