“Increasing University based Technology Transfer Outputs – Lessons from the Field”

Rathindra (Babu) DasGupta Consultant, Innovation and Entrepreneurship

June 16, 2016 T3N Conference 2016

The views expressed in this material are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the

views of the National Science Foundation or of other organizations

Technology Transfer

“Technology”: knowledge? intellectual property? capabilities? …

“Technology Transfer”: any process by which one or more of the above is transferred to any other entity (ex: industry) or into the commercial marketplace (commercialization)

Commercialization*

Commercialization is the process or cycle of introducing a new product or production method into the market.

*Wikipedia: July 2014

University R&D Funding by Source*

• Since 2005, federal support for universities has Flattened* • Some recovery due to the temporary boost from the Recovery Act* • Industry’s share of total support has increased from less than 3 percent of all university R&D in the 1960s to 6 percent today* • Academic institutions themselves are also paying for a greater share, accounting for less than 10 percent in the late 1960s, and more than 20 percent today*

*http://www.aaas.org/page/rd-colleges-and-universities

Facilitating Technology Transfer

Models:

University/industry consortia (centers) o NSF funded centers:

Industry/University Cooperative Research Centers (I/UCRC)

Engineering Research Centers (ERC)

Facilitating Technology Transfer

Models (cont’d): Other agencies:

o DOD: http://www.onr.navy.mil/en/Science-Technology/Directorates/office-research-discovery-invention/Sponsored-Research/University-Research-Initiatives/MURI.aspx

o USDA NIFA: https://nifa.usda.gov/about-nifa

o Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ARPA-E

o NIH NCATS: https://ncats.nih.gov/

Industry/University Cooperative Research Centers (I/UCRC)

Key Features*:

• Pre-competitive research

• Shared I/U involvement, shared risks

• Non-exclusive IP rights

• Trusted relationships

• Accomplishments**: o Walmart: Networking Merchandise Logistics

o Air Liquide: Bulk Tank Allocation Project Leads to Improved Asset Utilization

*http://erc-assoc.org/sites/default/files/, May 2014 **http://celdi.org/research/success-stories/

Engineering Research Centers (ERC)

Key Features*:

• Interdisciplinary, multi-institutional centers (academia, industry, and government)

• Collaborate in the pursuit of advances in complex engineered systems and systems-level technologies

• Operate at the interface between the discovery-driven culture of science and the innovation-driven culture of engineering

• Accomplishments:

o http://erc-assoc.org/content/advanced-stent-offers-better-care-kidney-patients

o http://erc-assoc.org/content/new-platform-testing-wastewater-recovery-technologies

*http://erc-assoc.org/

Lessons Learned from Industry-University Research Collaborations

Factors Affecting Industry-University Research Collaborations:

“Happy marriage” between partners (shared vision, trust, communication, …)

Focus on short term R&D/ROI by industry

IP or contract negotiations

Identifying the right “partners” (stakeholders … “keep, get and grow”)

Differences in culture (“academic time,” “terminology” …)

Lessons Learned from Industry-University Research Collaborations

Factors Affecting Industry-University Research Collaborations (cont’d):

Emphasis on publications, invention disclosures versus technology transfer

Conflict between “use-inspired” research versus “fundamental” research

Others …

The World According to Donald Stokes*

Sear

ch f

or

Fun

dam

en

tal/

De

ep

U

nd

ers

tan

din

g

Consideration for Use

High

Low

High Low

Pasteur’s Quadrant

“Anything that won’t sell, I don’t want to invent. Its sale is proof of utility, and utility

is success ” -Edison

“Everything we call real is made up of things that can’t be regarded as real” -Bohr

*Errol Arkilic, m34 Capital

Accelerating Technology Transfer to the Marketplace

Models:

MIT’s Deshpande Center (http://deshpande.mit.edu/)

Develop innovative technologies in the lab and bring them to the marketplace in the form of breakthrough products and new companies

UCSD’s von Liebig Entrepreneurism Center (http://jacobsschool.ucsd.edu/vonliebig/)

Mission is to inspire entrepreneurism and catalyze commercialization of UCSD inventions through grants, education and business mentoring

i6 Challenge (https://www.eda.gov/oie/ris/i6/)

Cutting edge federal grant program that supports truly innovative initiatives to spur innovation commercialization, entrepreneurship and jobs creation at the local level

Multi-agency competition

Accelerating Technology Transfer to the Marketplace

Models (cont’d): NSF Innovation Corps (I-Corps™) Program*

Set of activities and programs that prepare scientists and engineers to extend their focus beyond the laboratory and broadens the impact of select, NSF-funded, basic-research project

DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE)**

Uses a customized version of the National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps (I-Corps™) program curriculum

“Lab-Corps” pilot program is focused on establishing a set of proven training methods that will equip DOE laboratory scientists with a better understanding of the commercialization process

• Other agencies (NIH, ARPA-E, …) partnering with NSF on I-Corps™

*https://www.nsf.gov/news/special_reports/i-corps/ **http://energy.gov/eere/technology-to-market/lab-corps

Federal Funding for Small Business Innovation Research Programs*

* http://cen.acs.org/articles/94/i11/Federal-RD-programs-lift-small.html?h=1974225603

*Supported almost $40 billion through more than 150,000 awards

Accelerating Technology Transfer to the Marketplace

I-Corps™ Success Stories*: STEMKids: https://venturewell.org/i-corps-success-story-stemkids-re-blog/

Bio-Adhesive Alliance: https://venturewell.org/profile-i-corps-team-bio-adhesive-alliance/

Graphene Frontiers: https://venturewell.org/profile-i-corps-team-graphene-frontiers/

Zyrobotics: https://venturewell.org/profile-i-corpsteam-zyrobotics/

AppScale Systems: https://venturewell.org/appscale-systems-scales-up-with-i-corps/

Neon Labs Inc: http://blogs.wsj.com/venturecapital/2014/07/15/neon-labs-raises-4-1m-to-figure-out-the-subconscious-appeal-of-images/

Acquisitions

*VentureWell

Lessons Learned: Technology Transfer to the Marketplace

• Universities can be ideal startup platforms for students* o University students have a higher risk tolerance than faculty members

o For universities to capitalize on helping student entrepreneurs*: Access to on-campus entrepreneurship resources

Hands-on, experiential programs

Work space

Mentorship programs

• Universities can also be ideal startup platforms for faculty members o Increased encouragement for faculty members

o Top level support

*Cam Houser, WIRED, 2014

Lessons Learned: Technology Transfer to the Marketplace

• “Faith-based” entrepreneurship versus “evidence-based” entrepreneurship

“Premature scaling”

Lessons Learned: Technology Transfer to the Marketplace

• Confusing search with execution

“Startups fail because they confuse search with execution”**

Search = Customer Discovery + Customer Validation

Execution = Customer Creation + Company Building

Customer discovery searches for a problem/solution fit (product/market fit)**

Customer validation attempts to “test sell” at every stage**

**Steve Blank

Lessons Learned: Technology Transfer to the Marketplace

• Apply/Use the Business Model Canvas (laboratory notebook or scorecard)

Product – Market

Fit

Lessons Learned: Technology Transfer to the Marketplace

• Innovation contains the unknown*

The design, invention, development and/or implementation of new or altered products, services, processes, systems, organizational structures, or business models for the purpose of creating new value for customers and financial returns for the firm**

*Errol Arkilic: m34 capital, July 2014 **Innovation Measurement A Report to the Secretary of Commerce January 2008

Academia

Small Business

Investors

Industry

Valley of Death

Reso

urc

es A

va

ilab

le (

$)

Discovery Development Commercialization

Level of Development Angus Kingon

Technology Innovation Spectrum (The Theory)

Taxes

Academia

Small Business

Reso

urc

es A

va

ilab

le (

$)

Discovery Development Commercialization

Level of Development *Errol Arkilic, m34 Capital

Technology Innovation Spectrum (The Reality)*

?

Academia

Small Business

Investors

Industry

Valley of Death

Reso

urc

es A

va

ilab

le (

$)

Discovery Development Commercialization

Level of Development *Errol Arkilic, m34 Capital

Innovation Spectrum*

Unbridgable

Gulf of Death

Lessons Learned: Technology Transfer to the Marketplace

• Address unknowns using the scientific method*

o Admit there are unknowns

o Develop hypothesis to probe unknowns

o Use appropriate metrics to validate

o Close the hypothesis-testing loop

o Rinse-and-repeat

*Errol Arkilic: m34 capital

Lessons Learned: Technology Transfer to the Marketplace

• Team dynamics including passion/mindset

• Change in culture for researchers (principal investigators, …)

• Spurring corporate innovation

• Levels of measurement for entrepreneurial ecosystems*

*Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, Measuring an Entrepreneurial Ecosystem, March 2015

Thank You

Q & A