Leadership

Dan Steere

CEO

Dan joined Numenta to commercialize insights derived from two decades of research on the human brain, continuing a life-long interest in deep-tech products and cognitive science. 

Before joining Numenta, Dan served as Sr. VP of Corporate Business Development for Western Digital.  His teams included Business Development (organic growth), WD Ventures (strategic investments), Corporate Development (mergers and acquisitions), and Strategic Programs (corporate strategy).

Dan has helped launch successful new products and startup companies in a range of fields including semiconductors, mobile electronics, enterprise SaaS, robotics, and space technology. 

Dan played varsity football and earned a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from Harvard and an MBA from Stanford where he was an Arjay Miller Scholar. He is a sports enthusiast and a passionate advocate of youth athletics. 

Subutai Ahmad

CTO

Subutai is passionate about neuroscience, deep learning, and building intelligent systems. An accomplished technologist, he has been instrumental in driving Numenta’s research, technology and business since 2005. He previously served as VP Engineering at YesVideo where he helped grow the company from a three-person start-up to a leader in automated digital media authoring. In 1997, Subutai co-founded ePlanet Interactive which developed the IntelPlay Me2Cam, the first computer vision product developed for consumers.

Subutai holds a B.S. in Computer Science from Cornell University, and a Ph.D in Computer Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Jeff Hawkins

Co-Founder

Jeff is a scientist whose life-long interest in neuroscience led to the creation of Numenta and its focus on neocortical theory. His research focuses on how the cortex learns predictive models of the world through sensation and movement. In 2002, he founded the Redwood Neuroscience Institute, where he served as Director for three years. The institute is currently located at U.C. Berkeley. Previously, he co-founded two companies, Palm and Handspring, where he designed products such as the PalmPilot and Treo smartphone. Jeff has written two books, On Intelligence (2004 with Sandra Blakeslee) and A Thousand Brains: A New Theory of Intelligence (2021).

Jeff earned his B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Cornell University in 1979. He was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2003.

Mike Farmwald

General Partner, Skymoon Ventures

Mike is a successful serial entrepreneur. He has founded many companies with breakthrough technologies including FTL, a super computing company that merged with MIPs, Epigram, which was acquired by Broadcom, Rambus and Matrix Semiconductor, a creator of 3D integrated circuits.

Mike currently sits on the board of Rambus (NASDAQ: RMBS). He is participating on the Numenta board as an individual, rather than as a representative of Skymoon Ventures.

Mike holds a B.S. degree in Mathematics from Purdue University and a Ph.D. in Computer Science from Stanford University.