Secondmind CEO Gary Brotman awarded UK citizenship

Brotman, one of the Cambridge ecosystem’s leading automotive tech innovators, is steering Secondmind to genuine world class as an automotive AI trailblazer. He was born in Baltimore, Maryland, his wife in Texas and his son in California from where Brotman flew to the UK to take the wheel at Secondmind just over five years ago.

If San Diego might sometimes feel a million miles away, Brotman is so enamoured by the UK that just before Christmas he completed a five-year visa qualification to become one of our own. And he reckons some friends in his American-based network are also looking at relocating to various territories in Europe, including the UK – either for lifestyle reasons or to follow dream jobs.

“Some may choose Spain, for example, because it is hotter than the UK for much of the year but heading for pastures new is certainly on the agenda for quite a few people I know in the States,” he says.

When he was offered the opportunity to join Secondmind – in October 2019 – he made the decision to leave Qualcomm and pursue a boyhood dream. California’s loss has been very much Cambridge’s gain.

Gary says: “This is all about a lifelong love for the UK and a lifetime ambition rather than any dislike for America.

“My parents loved to take us on family vacations at home and abroad, including to Europe and the UK – so this is very much a personal thing for me. I remember feeding the pigeons in Trafalgar Square when I was three and seeing the Changing of the Guards with all its colour and splendour and I fell in love with the place.

“Some people get disillusioned with their home territory; some relocate to fulfil a career opportunity or seek more money. For me, the career opportunity was certainly a factor, as was the once in a lifetime chance for me and my family to experience life in another part of the world. And, with so many fond childhood memories of Britain, things seemed familiar when I arrived.

“Also, growing up, I became a fan of all the popular UK comedies that would be shown on US TV – Blackadder, Fawlty Towers, Monty Python’s Flying Circus, and others. I was and still am partial to British humour. I was also fascinated by follies and became an enthusiastic folly hunter, which is a great pastime to pursue in the UK.

“Music is also a strong thread from past to present. The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Heart’s Club Band was the first record I played as a child and I wore that record out from playing it so much.

“I was also a DJ while in college, which was during the peak of the UK rave scene, and now I can enjoy all of the anthems I used to spin on vinyl on BBC Radio.

“Also I think that, in common with millions of other people worldwide, I respected the monarchy and the Queen was a large part of our lives for so long.

“While at Qualcomm I had developed a passion for AI and built my professional brand around it, so when the opportunity to join Secondmind arose – and it was in the UK – I jumped at it.

“My work in AI helped me obtain a Tech Nation Tier 1 Global Talent Visa, which afforded me the opportunity to apply for UK citizenship after five years residency. I couldn’t wait. “There was no financial pressure or tax issues to escape; just a wonderful opportunity to join a globally growing company in a sector in which I believe I had something to contribute. And all in the UK. It was a no-brainer.”

Secondmind is a growing force in the UK tech ecosystem. It moved into a new Cambridge city headquarters in 2024 and has already begun making significant executive hires as it continues to strengthen its technology proposition internationally. Secondmind exists to help automotive engineers design better cars faster, and achieve greater sustainability through machine learning. It is the optimisation engine for the software-defined vehicle.

From reducing design simulation time and calibration overhead, to continuously improving energy efficiency and performance throughout the vehicle lifecycle, Secondmind cloud-native optimisation solutions give engineers the tools and confidence to re-imagine the design, development and experience of driving, and accelerate the transition to carbon-neutral mobility.

The company was founded in 2016 and is backed by investors including Mazda, Amadeus Capital, Atlantic Bridge, and Cambridge Innovation Capital, among others.