[1] During his time there, he devised a new approach to more efficiently observe the night sky, which accelerated astronomical imaging and led to the co-founding of his first company in 1978 Queensgate Instruments,[2] which specialized in creating innovative technologies for night sky imaging and gained popularity in both academic and industrial circles.
[3] After spending a year to develop Queensgate, Atherton chose to shift his focus to entrepreneurship and subsequently completed an MBA at the London Business School.
[2] Atherton dedicated much of his career to supporting enterprise and venture activities at Imperial College London.
He held this position for ten years, securing investment funding for various startups and spinouts.
He was an early investor in FA Bio, a sustainable agriculture spinout that restores the biodiversity of degraded soil.