PhD student Max Lehnus profiled in The Times

Max appeared on Wolfson's YouTube channel three years ago, talking about his research in the early days of his PhD. With a multi-disciplinary academic background — having completed a BSc in genetics and then a Master's degree at UCL in nanotechnology and regenerative medicine — Max's PhD work has been under the supervision of Professor Daping Chu at the Department of Engineering, developing rapid and portable tools for disease testing. Max submitted his thesis in February and his viva is coming up next month. Now he is living in London again after spending the last few years here at Wolfson.

Along with two business partners, Andreas Feller and Flavio Signorelli Mendes, Max has founded a online platform named Worldlabs, which connects anyone wishing to build meaningful partnerships and grow their initiatives, from researchers and inventors to entrepreneurs, activists and investors

Committed to fostering the introduction of new ideas and collaborations, Worldlabs is offering competitions to help researchers get on the road to commercial success. For instance, they have recently partnered with the Cambridge Consulting Network (CCN) to offer prizes for innovation in any field.

As Max says, "Often the best innovations go unnoticed due to lack of resources, support, and collaboration. We believe everyone - regardless of socio-economic background, geographical location or professional experience - can achieve a breakthrough, and contribute to the improvement of the world we live in." Winners of the competitions can win cash prizes, a consultancy programme and promotional opportunities.

Congratulations to Max on his achievements - hopefully he can help other members of the Wolfson community to get their research out of the lab and the library into the wider world.

You can find Max online @maxlehnus and @worldlabs on most social platforms.