David Milne (technologist)

Alastair David Milne is a Scottish technologist and founder and former CEO of the Wolfson Microelectronics company.

Milne was born in Edinburgh and attended George Watson's College.^[1] He pursued higher education in physics, earning a Bachelors from Heriot-Watt University in 1966 and an MSc and then PhD from the University of Bristol in 1968.^[1]

In 1970, Milne joined the newly created Wolfson Industrial Liaison Unit at the University of Edinburgh.^[1] In 1973 he was promoted to director, renamed the unit as the Wolfson Microelectronics Institute and changed its focus to the design of semiconductor devices. In 1984, he co-founded the spinout company Wolfson Microelectronics which developed audio processing products for consumer electronics made by major manufacturers including Apple Inc and Samsung. The company became the first successful spin-out from a Scottish university and the second to be listed on the London Stock Exchange.^[2] Milne served as chief executive officer of Wolfson Microelectronics until 2007 and as non-executive director until 2012.

Milne has been active in the promotion of science and technology. He served as chairman of the Edinburgh International Science Festival^[3] between 2007 and 2022, and as trustee and chair of the James Clerk Maxwell Foundation.^[4]

In recognition of his contributions to technology and business he was awarded an OBE^[5] in 1984, Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh^[6] in 1991, Fellowship of the Institution of Engineering and Technology in 1992, and Fellowship of the Royal Academy of Engineering^[7] in 2002.

He was awarded the Royal Society of Edinburgh's Royal Medal^[8] in 2012 and honorary degrees from the University of Bristol^[1] and Heriot-Watt University^[9] in 2007, and the University of Edinburgh^[10] in 2008.

He has received several business awards including Scotland's Entrepreneur of the Year in 2003.^[11] He was inducted into the Scottish Engineering Hall of Fame in 2024.^[2]