Marks brings nearly three decades of experience across clinical neuroscience, implantable medical devices, neuromodulation and digital health to the Austin, Texas-based brain-computer interface (BCI) developer.
He joins Paradromics as the company advances the Connect-One early feasibility study of its Connexus BCI system. It announced the first surgical implantation in that study last month.
Connexus has the potential to help patients communicate after losing the ability to speak and control computer devices. Using an implantable, high-density microelectrode array, it gathers data from the brain and sends it to a discrete transceiver in the chest. Then, it transmits through the skin to an external receiver.
The system translates recorded brain signals into actionable health data. Initial focus centers around restoring independent communication through digital devices. It targets individuals living with spinal cord injuries, stroke, or ALS, a motor neuron disease.
More about Dr. William J. Marks and what he will do at Paradromics
As chief clinical officer, Marks now serves as the company’s internal clinical lead. His responsibilities include guiding clinical strategy, product development, clinical implementation, regulatory planning and the company’s long-term roadmap for new indications.
Paradromics said Marks will focus on helping to identify the most logical clinical applications for its technology. It also expects him to help design products and advance clinical implementation while building evidence to support regulatory approvals and future adoption.
Marks’ track record include serving as a professor of neurology at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) for nearly two decades. He also served as consultant medical director for Medtronic’s global Deep Brain Stimulation business from 2004 to 2010.
From 2016 to 2023, Marks held senior clinical leadership roles at Google’s Verily Life Sciences. Those posts included head of clinical neurology and head of clinical science. At Verily, he built the company’s neurology platform and led its cross-functional clinical science team across clinical research programs.
Marks also co-founded Nexus NeuroTech Ventures, serving as general partner and chief medical officer at the neurotechnology investment firm that focused on advancing companies developing new approaches to neurological health.
Commentary from company leadership
Matt Angle, founder and CEO of Paradromics, said:
“Bill brings the kind of clinical leadership Paradromics needs as we move from first-in-human work toward broader clinical translation. He has helped shape the development of implantable neuromodulation technologies and successfully built clinical science organizations inside major technology companies. His experience will be central to how we turn the Connexus BCI into a scalable clinical platform.
“Paradromics is building a technology company with a healthcare-first foundation. That distinction is essential. Our ambition is to restore communication, control, and human capability for people with serious neurological conditions, and that requires not only extraordinary engineering, but deep clinical judgment, disciplined evidence generation, and trusted partnerships with the medical community.”
Marks added:
“Brain-computer interfaces are entering a moment similar to earlier chapters in neuromodulation, when decades of scientific and technical progress begin to become routine clinical care and produce significant clinical impact. Paradromics has built a clinical-grade platform with the potential to restore essential human capabilities. My focus will be helping translate that platform into applications and outcomes that can serve patients, clinicians, and caregivers with scientific rigor and clinical excellence.”
