Congratulations to our newly appointed Associate Professor Nikolas Pontikos

After completing my PhD at the University of Cambridge in 2014 in bioinformatics and machine learning, I joined UCL Institute of Ophthalmology working under Professor Alison Hardcastle on the UK Inherited Retinal Disease Consortium. During that time, I incorporated the Human Phenotype Ontology into our gene discovery analysis pipelines and contributed to several high-impact bioinformatics and AI projects at UCL and Moorfields Eye Hospital. In 2019 I started my own research programme, Eye2Gene, in AI and inherited retinal diseases supported by a Moorfields Eye Charity Career Development Award and then further bolstered by an NIHR AI Award in 2021. Beyond Eye2Gene, my broader interests lie in optimising translational digital research, especially for rare and underserved eye diseases. I am thrilled about my permanent appointment and look forward to continuing to drive innovation in our field through science, education, and a commitment to kindness.