Alex van Someren is a British engineer and cybersecurity expert who has been a key figure in the UK's technology sector, in venture capital and most recently in national security. His career began at Acorn Computer in the 1980s, where he contributed to developing the BBC Microcomputer and the Acorn Electron. He later co-founded several technology companies and took two of them public through IPOs on the London Stock Exchange: ANT Software plc and nCipher plc, both of which were later acquired.
Transitioning to venture capital, Alex served as a Managing Partner at Amadeus Capital Partners from 2010 to 2021, focusing on early-stage investments in ‘deep technology’ across the UK and Europe.
In 2021, he was appointed as the UK's Chief Scientific Adviser for National Security, providing independent scientific advice to the UK Intelligence Agencies and to the wider UK government. During this period, he also served as a consultant to the €1 Billion NATO Innovation Fund.
Alex is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, a Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology and an Honorary Professor of Computer Science at the University of Manchester. He was previously the Clore Innovation Professor at the Royal College of Art. Throughout his career, Alex has demonstrated a commitment to emerging technologies, innovation and their applications, making him a key figure at the intersection of finance, technology and national security.
