After completing graduate study in neuroanatomy at Yale, and a post-doctoral fellowship at Duke, Mark Williams taught neuroscience to medical students and undergraduates at Duke, and created a series of digital brain atlases - inspiring a transition from academia into educational software design. Williams received the Apple Award for Innovation in Science for work in designing medical education tools for the iPod, and has spent the last decade working at the intersection of mobile technology, design, education and health.
Nearly half of the R65 team worked together previously at Modality, an early mobile app startup. Founded by Williams in 2006, Modality was invited by Steve Jobs to present at Apple’s App Store launch event in 2008, and went on to create and market more than 150 health and education apps. Following Modality’s acquisition by Epocrates (now a part of athenahealth), members led User Experience, Engineering, and Marketing teams before regrouping in 2014.