Arbor is a Focused Research Organization (FRO), part of Convergent Research. FROs are mission-scoped nonprofits, designed for work that is too integrated and long-horizon for a single academic lab, and too early for a company. That structure lets us build tools, run long studies, and develop models within a cohesive program – and share what we build.
Arbor Neuroscience is the new name for Forest Neurotech, founded in 2023 by Sumner Norman, Tyson Aflalo, and Will Biederman. Forest built an instrument for seeing the brain; Arbor's question is what it takes to steer it.
The first studies are underway, including a clinical study with Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust and the University of Plymouth, funded by ARIA.
Arbor is led by Philip Sabes, a former UCSF professor and co-founder of Neuralink. Whitney Griggs, a physician-scientist trained at UCLA, Caltech, and the University of Chicago, is building the experimental program.
Arbor's board includes Anastasia Gamick, President & Co-Founder of Convergent Research, and Rui Costa, CEO of the Allen Institute.
We have received support from Convergent Research, Eric and Wendy Schmidt, Griffin Catalyst, the Riley & Susan Bechtel Foundation, James Fickel, and an anonymous donor.