Neil Carter
Director Ignys Ltd
Based in United Kingdom · 25+ years experience
Summary
Non-Executive Director and fractional CTO | Practical AI for East Midlands SMEs | Building a portfolio of AI ventures | 25+ years in electronics product development
About
Most boards building a physical product have a gap they can feel but not fill. Someone has to ask whether the technology plan is real, whether the supplier is telling the truth, and whether the team can actually ship what has been promised.
That is the work I do. 25+ years leading electronics product development — IoT and wearables, battery energy storage, aviation, oil and gas, payments, agritech and Industry 4.0. Former Managing Director of Ignys, a 25-person electronics design consultancy that won Electronic Design Team of the Year three times.
Former CTO of a wearable technology company. Founder of IoT Foundry. Five patents pending in wearables and hazard-sensing technology.
Where I help: • Non-Executive Director and advisory board — independent technical judgement at board level
• Fractional and interim CTO — senior technical leadership without a full-time hire
• Technical due diligence — for investors and acquirers who need to know whether the engineering stands up
• AI strategy and adoption — where it earns its place in a business, and where it does not
• Innovate UK and Made Smarter grant advisory
My particular strength is the awkward middle: taking the technology a business already has and architecting a roadmap forward without discarding what came before — then delivering that roadmap while business as usual still has to run. Projects from a few thousand pounds to several million, built to be reusable and scalable, and shaped to fit how the company actually makes money.
Today that runs through three things.
TechNED is the board and advisory work.
AI Catalyst is practical AI for East Midlands SMEs — fixed-price audits, implementation and funding applications.
Applied AI Solutions is the parent company, where we build a portfolio of AI-powered products from Leicestershire.
The common thread, and the thing I will always tell you: technology has to earn its keep. Sometimes the honest answer is a spreadsheet, a process change or a hire rather than a project — and it is cheaper to hear that in week one than in month six. If you are a founder, board or investor with a technology question you need answered honestly, get in touch.
Skills
Software Architecture, Cloud & Infrastructure, M&A / Due Diligence, Platform Modernisation, Cybersecurity, Engineering Leadership, Vendor Management, Governance & Risk, Data & AI
Regions covered
Industry experience
Not-for-profit, Professional Services, Manufacturing, Retail
At a glance
Neil brings hands-on experience across Software Architecture, Cloud & Infrastructure, M&A / Due Diligence, Platform Modernisation, Cybersecurity, Engineering Leadership and 3 other areas. Available for engagements across Asia-Pacific, Europe, North America, Middle East. Industry experience includes Not-for-profit, Professional Services, Manufacturing, Retail.
How fractional CTO engagements with Neil work
Neil works on a fractional basis — typically one to three days a week for an agreed engagement length — so you get senior technical leadership without the cost or commitment of a full-time hire. Engagements commonly include technical due diligence, board reporting, engineering team leadership, technology strategy, architecture reviews, hiring support, and stepping in as interim CTO during a transition.