# Martyn Millwood Hargrave

> British geoscientist and entrepreneur who founded Ikon Science in 2001 and served as CEO and executive chairman. He is a visiting professor in Earth Sciences at Oxford, a senior associate at Oxford Net Zero, and chief scientific adviser to EnergyPathways, appointed in May 2026.

- **Role:** Chief Scientific Adviser to the CEO and Board at EnergyPathways plc; Visiting Professor in Earth Sciences at the University of Oxford; Senior Associate at Oxford Net Zero
- **Organizations:** Ikon Science, EnergyPathways plc, University of Oxford, Oxford Net Zero, IKODA, Fusion Oil & Gas, Virgo Energy, Ophir Energy, Durham University Centre for Earth Energy Systems
- **From:** Castleford, United Kingdom
- **Nationality:** British
- **Education:** Honours degree in Geology, Durham University, Postgraduate qualification in Geophysics, Queen Mary College, University of London
- **Known for:** Founded Ikon Science and led it as CEO before serving as executive chairman., Built IKODA as an independent upstream consultancy., Ikon received an Institute of Physics Innovation Award in 2016 for Ji-Fi.

## Career timeline

- **1979** — Graduated from Durham with a geology degree; joined GSI as a data analyst.
- **1980** — Worked with Enex UK on exploration in Australia’s Murray-Darling basin.
- **1990** — Began his independent entrepreneurial career.
- **2001** — Founded Ikon Science.
- **2005** — Ikon released RokDoc-PPC, developed with Shell.
- **2016** — Ikon received an Institute of Physics Innovation Award for Ji-Fi.
- **2017** — Succeeded as CEO by Mark Bashforth; became executive chairman.
- **2018** — Great Hill Partners acquired Ikon Science; he remained chairman in the transaction announcement.
- **2021** — Appointed visiting professor in Earth Sciences at Oxford.
- **2024** — Oxford visiting professorship renewed for three years from 16 June.
- **2024-12** — Carina Software’s acquisition of Ikon closed on 27 December; announced in February 2025.
- **2026-05** — Appointed chief scientific adviser to the CEO and board of EnergyPathways.

## Achievements

- Founded Ikon Science and led it as CEO before serving as executive chairman.
- Built IKODA as an independent upstream consultancy.
- Ikon received an Institute of Physics Innovation Award in 2016 for Ji-Fi.
- Appointed an Oxford visiting professor in 2021, renewed in 2024.

## Latest updates

- **2026-05** — EnergyPathways announced his appointment as chief scientific adviser on 26 May, supporting MESH and related energy and industrial opportunities.
- **2024-07** — Oxford’s Gazette published renewal of his visiting professorship for three years from 16 June 2024.

## Links

- Website: https://www.earth.ox.ac.uk/people/martyn-millwood-hargrave
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/martynmh/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/martyn-millwood-hargrave
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Last updated: 2026-10-21