AI Research Scientists Gary Flake, and Scott Rickard join neurotechnology leader
SAN FRANCISCO, May 01, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — EMOTIV, the bioinformatics pioneer advancing understanding of the human brain using electroencephalography (EEG), today added two renowned scientists to its executive leadership team, naming Dr. Gary William Flake as Chief Technology Officer (CTO) and Dr. Scott Rickard as Chief AI Scientist. The new hires underscore EMOTIV’s strategic objectives to meet the quickening pace of advancements in artificial intelligence and unlock the full potential of the world’s largest and most diverse secure repository of human brain data.
Dr. Flake has been appointed CTO for EMOTIV after helming R&D teams for large technology companies across two decades. Author of the seminal book, The Computational Beauty of Nature, he earned renown as a scientist in academic and research circles before applying his knowledge within the commercial sector. He was Chief Science Officer at Overture and founded Yahoo! Research Labs, Microsoft Live Labs, and Clipboard, Inc. At Salesforce, he was CTO of Search and Data Science for the world’s largest enterprise search engine. Dr. Flake has filed over 150 patents and has authored numerous publications focused on machine learning, data mining, and complex systems. As CTO of EMOTIV, Dr. Flake will be responsible for technical strategy and innovation initiatives.
Dr. Rickard comes to EMOTIV from Citadel, a multinational hedge fund with more than $62 billion in assets under management. As Chief Data Scientist at Citadel, Dr. Rickard built and led one of the premier data science teams on Wall Street, responsible for leveraging natural language processing, machine learning, and statistical inference to extract insights from alternative data sources in finance. Prior, he held multiple data science leadership roles at Salesforce, including succeeding Dr. Flake as CTO of Search and Data Science. At EMOTIV, Dr. Rickard will focus on building large/advanced brain models and directing the AI/ML team.
Emotiv co-founder Dr. Geoff Mackellar will transition from the CTO role to Chief Science Officer. He will continue to play a key role in driving the company’s research and development strategy as the company delivers its next generation of transformative neurotechnology innovations to the neuroscience research community.
EMOTIV is a recognized pioneer and market leader in the field of neurotechnology and is backed and trusted by the scientific, academic, engineering, and media communities and cited by 19,000 research papers. Applications for EMOTIV’s technology span an amazing variety of potential industries and settings – from accessibility design, psychology, and medicine to everyday computer interactions, hands-free control systems, smart adaptive environments, market research, learning, robotics, automotive, transport safety, and gaming.
“Gary and Scott have already worked on some of the world’s most enormous and dynamic datasets – but even for data scientists of their stature, the human brain represents the final frontier,” said Tan Le, CEO of EMOTIV. “Simulating intelligence with generative AI is certainly interesting. We are approaching the inflection point when silicon-based technology can actually decode the human brain, unlock its mysteries, and even correct its disorders. There’s never been a more immense opportunity to use data science to improve human health – and the human experience.”
About EMOTIV
EMOTIV is a bioinformatics company advancing the understanding of the human brain using electroencephalography (EEG). Our mission is to empower individuals to understand their own brains and accelerate brain research globally. Founded in 2011 by tech entrepreneurs Tan Le (CEO) and Dr. Geoff Mackellar (CSO), the company is headquartered in San Francisco, U.S.A. with facilities in Sydney, Hanoi, and Ho Chi Minh City. The technology falls under the umbrella of BCIs (Brain Computer Interface) also referred to as MMI (Mind Machine Interface), DNI (Direct Neural Interface), BMI (Brain Machine Interface), and aims to track cognitive performance, monitor emotions, and control both virtual and physical objects via machine learning of trained mental commands.
For more information: https://www.emotiv.com/about-emotiv/
