From school in Birr to building a major health technology company

Liam Pingree, who will be a familiar name to many in Birr, is currently making a big impression in the world of brain health technology.

Having spent the bulk of his young life living at Carrig, Birr, where he attended Birr Community School, Liam's educational journey took him to successfully study to become a Bachelor of International Commerce at NUI Galway.

He worked in fund administration in Luxembourg for six months, studied further for a semester in the US, and then spent a summer in Rwanda working as a financial analyst for an off-grid solar company. After graduating, he moved to New York, aged 22, to work at HSBC in Manhattan.

Covid, however, disrupted that move and his work, and he began developing a side project, which he called Neuronic, that would eventually become the success story he is currently leading.

He returned to Ireland, spending time at home, in Galway, and in Castlebar, as he worked on the Neuronic idea. Liam credits the iHub in Castlebar with providing a supportive place to work alongside other entrepreneurs. He also received advice from John Mullen, of Version 1, and support from Galway's PorterShed, which gave him access to its workspace after he helped with an economic-development plan. He later lived in London and spent time in Asia, and moved to Dubai this year.

But it is the succes story of Neuronic that helps Liam's rise stand out.

Neuronic, which he co-founded with Marvin Schönauer, is a private health technology company founded in 2021 that builds at-home, non-invasive near-infrared light therapy devices designed to support brain health, focus, and cognitive performance.

The original idea had been sitting in Liam's notebook before he returned to it during lockdown. He contacted Marvin and began exploring whether near-infrared light technology could be developed into a helmet people could use at home. The two started meeting weekly and established Neuronic together.

They initially paid the costs themselves, worked on the business alongside full-time jobs, and took no salaries. The first unit was sold in 2022. Liam's role has centred on the commercial side of the company, with Marvin working across product and finance.

Liam says the business now has thousands of customers and a team of more than 30. It sells directly through its website and through clinics and practitioners. He reports that customers have completed more than 450,000 sessions on the company's latest device, which launched in March 2025.

The Neuronic Light is an adjustable, hands-free helmet with 300 LED's delivering 1,070nm near-infrared light. It is designed for an at-home general-wellness routine, with controls on the helmet and through a free companion app. There is no subscription.

The technology is known as 'photobiomodulation', which is the use of light to influence cellular activity.

Research is ongoing and findings from one device or study should not be assumed to apply to another. Neuronic Light is positioned for general wellness rather than as a treatment for disease.

The company's team includes Chief Product & Technology Officer Alec Singleton and Scientific Affairs Advisor Ramona von Leden, PhD.

Liam, who has also represented St Brendan's GAA Club in Birr, is the son of the late Andrew and Geraldine Pingree, of Carrig, Birr.

For further information on the Neuronic Light see

www.neuronic.com