Experienced biochemical immunologist and mentor to multiple medtech entrepreneurs, David Browning, has recently joined PHTA as our Chief Technology Officer.
David is currently Entrepreneur-in-Residence at the Institute of Cancer Research, has chaired OBN, Clinical Immunology Services (now based at PHTA), and deep‑tech ventures, and has also held various CEO and advisory roles within UK, US, and European med‑tech scale‑ups.
We sat down with David to learn a little more about his ambitions for the role, and how PHTA can support life sciences and medtech enterprises.
Can you summarise your career so far? How did you progress from biochemical immunology in the NHS to medtech?
My career began in clinical biochemistry within the NHS, where I saw first hand how diagnostics, clinical workflows, and patient needs intersect. That grounding shaped everything that followed. Over the next four decades, I advanced through leadership roles in global healthcare organisation, including Amersham International, Johnson & Johnson, Philips, and IGEN, as well as leading multiple medtech and precision health ventures as CEO or Chair.
The thread running through my career is simple: bridging the gap between the lab and the patient, with proactive health and wellbeing at the core. Scientific breakthroughs are only the beginning; the real challenge is translating them into technologies that clinicians trust and patients benefit from. That challenge has defined my life’s work.
How will your experience of supporting spin outs from the University of Oxford help new businesses starting out at PHTA?
At Oxford, I worked closely with founders to turn early scientific ideas into investable, clinically relevant companies. That meant shaping strategy, building partnerships, securing evidence, and navigating regulatory and commercial hurdles.
For PHTA tenants, this experience translates directly into support that is practical, fast, and grounded in what actually works. I help teams cut through the noise, focus on what matters, and find the quickest path to clinical utility and commercial traction.
You’re a former Chair of the Clinical Immunology Services, now an anchor tenant of PHTA – what opportunities are there for industry working with CIS?
Clinical Immunology Services (CIS) is a world class clinical immunology and diagnostics service with deep expertise in assay development, biomarker validation, and clinical sample workflows. I first collaborated with them during my MSc dissertation in Biochemical Immunology and was struck by their capability even then; their reputation has only grown since.
Their presence at PHTA creates a unique opportunity for innovators to work directly with a highly experienced clinical laboratory team. For industry, this means access to specialist insight, rapid prototyping of diagnostic concepts, and clinically aligned validation pathways – all within the same ecosystem.
What experience do you have working with big players in the industry?
Alongside senior leadership roles in major global organisations, I’ve partnered with companies such as IBM, Becton Dickinson, Croda, and Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA). My work with WBA was particularly relevant to PHTA: as Managing Director of MediCity – a collaboration between BioCity (now Pioneer Group) and WBA, I helped build a dynamic ecosystem of high potential companies focused on pharmacy led health and wellbeing innovation. This extended to playing key roles in developing the business plans for the Nottingham Enterprise Zone and the Medical Technology Innovation Facility (MTIF) with local universities.
I’ve also worked extensively with NHS organisations, CROs, regulators, and international investors and spent years travelling across Europe, Asia, and the US, supporting (starting as an in-vitro clinical diagnostics troubleshooter and progressing into business leadership) as well as mentoring and working with hospitals and healthcare companies across the globe. This experience gives me a clear understanding of what large organisations look for in emerging technologies and how early-stage companies can position themselves to meet those expectations.
What attracted you to the role of Chief Technology Officer at PHTA, and what do you hope to achieve?
PHTA sits at the heart of one of the UK’s most exciting health and life sciences districts. The opportunity to help shape a new translational ecosystem; connecting clinicians, researchers, startups, corporates, and the NHS, with a focus on improving standards of care and health economics, is incredibly compelling.
My goal is to work with the PHTA team, our partners, and our customers to build a high performing innovation engine where great ideas become real products, real companies, and real clinical impact. I want PHTA to be the place where entrepreneurs find clarity, capability, and the confidence to scale.
What support can businesses expect when they approach PHTA’s Makerspace?
They can expect hands on, practical support to turn ideas into prototypes quickly and affordably. The Makerspace offers micro precision fabrication, design support, access to clinical insight, and pathways into usability testing, regulatory planning, and NIHR-aligned evidence generation.
It’s built to remove barriers, accelerate progress, and give innovators the tools they need to move from concept to clinical reality.
What impact do you see PHTA and the Birmingham health and life sciences district having on the sector in the UK?
Birmingham has the scale, diversity, and clinical depth to become a national powerhouse for health innovation. PHTA brings these strengths together, linking the NHS, academia, industry, and investors into a single translational pipeline.
I believe PHTA will play a major role in shaping the next generation of UK medtech, diagnostics, and digital health companies. It’s an environment built for ambition, collaboration, and impact.
And finally…
When I’m not helping scale health tech companies, you’ll usually find me in the workshop at Cyclists Fighting Cancer or out training and racing in multi sport; mountain biking, off road triathlon and increasingly gravel events. Riding off road keeps me grounded in the same principles I bring to leadership: preparation, adaptability, and the resilience to push through the difficult miles.
