Meet our team

Lisa is an award-wining investor and CEO of Midlands Mindforge Ltd, a University Partnered investment vehicle, investing in & scaling science-backed companies in the Midlands. Lisa has over 25 years global investment experience including 8 years at Unilever Ventures leading sustainable investment and IP-Spinouts. Prior to her venturing career, Dr Smith was the first female Chief Engineer in Africa while at McKinsey she practiced lean operations in NA, EU & NHS. Lisa holds a PhD in Mechanical Engineering and an MBA from Harvard.

Jonny is an experienced Capital Markets and Sustainable Finance executive. He was previously Global Head of Distribution for Equities at Deutsche Bank and an investment consultant at Oxford Sciences Enterprises. Jonny is a Birmingham University alum and a qualified Chartered Accountant.

Liz is a chartered accountant with over 25 years of experience in both large corporate entities and small start-ups. For the last 10 years she has worked with a number of University spinouts helping to secure both private and grant funding and managing the financial and governance aspects of the companies.

Amanda is a health and life sciences investor and consultant with 18 years of experience across finance, neuroscience, and health care innovation. She has worked with a range of companies from early-stage start-ups to large international institutions, is an advisor to the American Cancer Society's entrepreneur programme, and was an adjunct faculty member at Columbia University. Amanda previously led a team at Health 2.0’s digital health consulting arm and spent eight years with Merrill Lynch/Bank of America originating alternative investments for a $30B platform. She holds an M.Sc. in Neuroscience from Columbia University and a B.Sc. in Finance from St. John's University.

Daniel is an experienced deeptech investor across multiple sectors, with an Engineering degree from the University of Toronto, and a PhD from the University of Bristol, specialising in Materials Chemistry. He has experience in DeepTech through roles at Seraphim Space Fund where he invested across Europe at Series A-C; and at IQ Capital, a fund focused on Seed- Series A investments in University spinouts.

Jess has investment experience spanning the early to late stages through roles with BGF, Northern Gritstone and Goldman Sachs. She is currently Executive Chair of Capitalex and NED for SMEs in law and real estate. She holds degrees in civil engineering and finance from UCL and LSE.

Chloe holds a PhD in Neuroscience and Engineering from the University of Brighton and UCL, and postdoc experience in Mainz, Germany. She has experience in deep-tech venture investing through Empirical Ventures and has worked in operational roles at early-stage biotech companies and with Alma Angels, an angel investing community focused on female founders.

Priya is an investor focused on healthcare, life sciences, and climate tech innovation. She has backed early-stage and growth companies at venture capital funds across the UK and US, with prior experience spanning impact investing and healthcare investment banking. She holds an MBA from London Business School.