ANM GmbH is a young and growing company in the field of medical technology that was founded as a spin-off from the Research Centre Jülich in December 2005. Its close integration in the scientific network of Jülich Research Centre and Cologne University Clinic creates ideal preconditions for ANM to establish itself in the long term as a German medical technology enterprise in the expanding field of neuromodulation.

Prof. Dr. Dr. Peter Tass – one of the founders of ANM – is the Head of the Institute for Neurosciences and Medicine/Neuromodulation at Jülich Research Centre. The workgroup's objective is to develop highly innovative electrical and sensory neuromodulation methods and technologies for treating neurological disorders such as Parkinson's disease, pain and tinnitus. The scientists' investigations are focused on the dynamics and learning aptitude (plasticity) of neuronal brain activity. Their work belongs to a highly interdisciplinary field of research in which the group carries out theoretical and experimental investigations into how nerve cell assemblies in the brain interact with each other. The researchers apply methods of non–linear dynamics and statistical physics to model fundamental mechanisms of neuronal dynamics. This enables the development of therapeutic stimulation techniques that are gentle but nonetheless extremely reliable as they utilise the nervous systems' self-organisation and learning aptitude (plasticity) at a very fundamental level  (http://www.fz-juelich.de/portal/EN/Research/Health/DeepBrainPaceMaker/_node.html).

The new therapeutic approaches in the field of brain pacemaker therapy are tested and optimised in close co-operation with the Department for Stereotaxis and Functional Neurosurgery at Cologne University Clinic. A large portion of this stereotactic research is carried out by a medical group led by Prof. Dr. Volker Sturm – who is also a founder of ANM.

Neurology is the third discipline that represents another of ANM's mainstays. Here, Prof. Dr. Dr. Hans-Joachim Freund – the third scientific founder of ANM – supports the clinical application of technical developments in close co-operation with the neurological clinics at the universities of Cologne and Kiel and acts as a medical consultant to the company.

Co-operations with Jülich Research Centre and Cologne University are secured through long-term contracts; ANM therefore has access to a unique portfolio of technology and know-how. ANM itself is focused on product development and the commercialisation of its innovations which are already protected by patents.

ANM's financing is currently 100% private. The first product – the acoustic CR^® neurostimulator for treating chronic tinnitus – was registered in Europe in 2010. The introduction of a CR^®-capable implant for treating Parkinson's disease is planned for 2012.