About us
Who we are
Co-founded by cognitive neurologist Dr. Étienne de Villers-Sidani (UCSF/McGill University), software engineer Yves Desgagné and serial entrepreneur Marc Reeves, INNODEM NEUROSCIENCES is a private company created in 2016 and backed by Gerald Chan's Morningside Group. The company received FDA Breakthrough Device Designation for its ETNATM-MS (Eye Tracking Neurological Assessment for Multiple Sclerosis) patented technology and is pending Health Canada clearance in early Q1-24 and in H2-24 for the FDA.
Preliminary clinical trial results have been peer-reviewed and are available in the publication Frontiers of Neurology. The company has already signed partnering agreements with Novartis Pharmaceuticals Canada Inc. including a commercial framework agreement. Other pharmaceutical partnership agreements are in the works and will be announced during the year.
What we do
Innodem Neurosciences is a digital biomarker & AI company that specializes in the development of an eye tracking technology, ETNA™, that shows promising use for neurological assessment of the progression of various neurodegenerative and mental diseases. The ETNA™ technology is being trialed with patients living with various neurodegenerative and mental diseases, such as multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, Friedreich Ataxia, and cancer-related cognitive impairment. Its patented ETNA™-MS technology is currently under regulatory review.
Leadership team
Etienne de Villers-Sidani, MD, FRCP(C)
Main Founder, Chief Executive Officer & Chief Scientific Officer
Dr. de Villers-Sidani is a cognitive neurologist who completed his post-doctoral studies at the UCSF Keck Foundation Center for Integrative Neurosciences. He is currently an Associate Professor of Neurology and Neurosurgery at McGill University and is an attending neurologist and Director of the Neuroplasticity and Sensory Biomarking Laboratory of the Montreal Neuro. Dr. de Villers-Sidani has published peer-reviewed articles, holds several patents and is often invited by the industry as a guest speaker.
Paul Giacomini, MD, FRCP(C)
Chief Medical Officer
Dr. Paul Giacomini is a neurologist with post-doctoral studies conducted at McGill University. He received his medical degree from the University of Toronto. His expertise is in multiple sclerosis and neuro-inflammatory disorders, as well as advanced neuro-imaging techniques. He is a clinician and Director of the Neuro's Multiple Sclerosis Clinic and an Associate Professor at McGill University. Dr. Giacomini has served as a principal investigator in numerous clinical trials evaluating novel therapeutics in relapsing and progressive multiple sclerosis and is also very active in continuing medical education, lecturing internationally on the management of multiple sclerosis and other neurological disorders.
Marc Reeves, Serial entrepreneur
Co-Founder & Chief Business Officer
Marc Reeves is a serial technology entrepreneur who has raised over 100 million dollars in venture capital for various start-ups that he co-founded in the past 25 years. He leads all corporate & business development activities including strategic partnerships with pharmaceutical companies.
Yves Desgagné, Soft. Eng.
Co-Founder & Chief Technology Officer
Yves Desgagné is a software engineer & AI expert and the former Director of R&D at Verint Systems and a founding member of Innodem Neurosciences. He leads all product development activities.
Patrice Voss, PhD
Vice President of Neurosciences Research
Patrice Voss leads all neurosciences research at Innodem Neurosciences and is a Research Associate at the Montreal Neuro Hospital, a McGill University affiliate entity. Patrice Voss holds a PhD degree in Psychology - Cognitive Neuroscience from Université de Montréal and has co-authored numerous publications and patents.
Alexandre Drouin-Picaro, M.Sc., Soft. Eng.
Vice President, AI Research & Development (Founding member)
Alexandre Drouin-Picaro holds a Master of Engineering in Brain-Computer Interfaces from Université du Québec – Institut national de la recherche scientifique and is responsible for all AI research and Deep Learning platform development at Innodem Neurosciences. He has co-authored numerous publications and patents.
Jean-Pierre Thivierge, P. Eng.
Vice President, Project Management Office (PMO)
Jean-Pierre Thivierge holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering and has more than 25 years of experience in managing complex technological projects at large companies such as Alstom, Verint and Nuance Communications. At Innodem Neurosciences, he oversees the entire lifecycle of the product portfolio, quality management, standards & regulatory affairs (FDA, Health Canada, EMA, ISO & HIPAA certifications, etc.).
Francis Arseneau, B.Sc., MM
Vice President, Clinical Trials & Operations
Francis Arseneau joined Innodem shortly after its inception and holds a Master of Management in Finance and a bachelor’s degree in neurosciences. He oversees our daily operations including our ongoing clinical trials in Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, CRCI, ALS, mild Traumatic Brain Injury and Friedreich Ataxia. He is responsible for our partnerships with various Clinical Research Organizations including the Clinical Research Unit of the Montreal Neuro and Syneos Health for US-based sites.
Susan McIntosh, MBA
Vice President, Finance
Susan McIntosh has an MBA (Finance) and cumulates decades of experience as a former banker in the technology sector at National Bank, BDC and Bank of Montreal. She is responsible for Finance and oversees our external banking, legal & accounting partners.
Medical & Scientific Advisors
Dr. Jack Antel
MD, FRCP(C) –Multiple Sclerosis
Dr. Edward A. Fon
MD, FRCP(C) – Parkinson’s
Dr. Angela Genge
MD, FRCPC(C) – ALS
Daniel E. Guitton
Ph.D. – Oculomotor Control Expert
Dr. Valérie Panet-Raymond
M.D., CM, FRCPC(C) – Oncology
Dr. Simon Ducharme
M.D., CM, FRCPC(C) - Alzheimer
Laura Suarez
Ph.D. candidate, M.Sc. Eng. Expert, Computational Neurosciences
Giorgio Patrini
Ph.D. (Machine Learning) Expert, Artificial Intelligence
Nils Koch
Ph.D. candidate, M.Sc. (Neural & Behavioural Science), B.Sc. (Neurosciences) Expert, Computational Neurosciences
Partners
