[1][6][7] East attended Monmouth School[8] and earned a bachelor's degree in engineering science from Wadham College, Oxford.

[1] After eleven years with the chip maker Texas Instruments,[1] East left in 1994 to join ARM Holdings, the British fabless manufacturing microprocessor design and software company.

[15] In April 2024, East was appointed the Chair of NATS Holdings, a public-private partnership that provides air traffic control services to flights within the UK.

[16] East was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2014 New Year Honours, for services to the technology industry.

[1] He was awarded an honorary degree by Loughborough University in 2023 for his leadership contributions in the field of engineering and science throughout his career.

[20] “All text published under the heading 'Biography' on Fellow profile pages is available under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.” --"Royal Society Terms, conditions and policies".