Hopefully everyone was able to see our very own Lesa Mitchell talk about the iBridge Network on CNBC, if not check out the homepage of the iBridge Network! Lesa and I were both in Detroit for the New Economy Initiative, the goal is to build 400 companies in the next 3 years, if you do the math that is a new company every 2.7 days! The iBridge Network is a huge part of this opportunity and is the base for a lot of the programs taking place in Michigan! We were in front of 500 emerging entrepreneurs that are very excited to use the Network as a source for finding new innovation and collaborators!
In today’s unchartered business climate we have been hearing a lot about innovation and collaboration as ways to stimulate and revive the economy in the short term and also unearth breakthroughs that are still being talked about decades from now. To actually see attempts at making these concepts of innovation and collaboration more tangible all you have to do is look at the skyline. New century cities, science parks and megaparks, as they are referred to, are the hottest fad—sprouting up across the US in every city and state with a university and throughout developing nations around the world. Whatever the focus (they are geared to specific industries ranging from biotechnology to advanced materials to medical services), the trend is to nurture living, breathing communities rather than sterile, remote compounds of research silos.
As an innovation catalyst that provides a vibrant, online community to enable universities, companies and entrepreneurs with the ability to connect, collaborate and license tomorrow’s research, products and services, the iBridge Network feels this concept of communities, or “forums” as we refer to them, are key to spurring innovation among researchers, universities, companies and entrepreneurs. We understand the value of working with today’s leading universities and companies to create easily accessible online forums that replicate and surpass the concrete and glass centers of innovation, provide specialized content by industry and enable collaboration and innovation without the financial or infrastructure investment. By creating these forums online as a part of our well established network, ideas and research can be easily shared with potential partners across the US and around the globe—with the goal of turning today’s ideas into tomorrow’s products and services.
We have thought it many times…two heads are better than one. There are many examples of this on the internet, just look at all the open source software. This is exactly the point of the iBridge Network, to find collaborators in a space to advance innovation, not spend time recreating the wheel. Think of the possibilities that could be unleashed if we stopped hoarding our pre-competitive innovations and shared them with others. Doing this could elevate the competitiveness of the researchers, the organizations and our nation, thus producing more results. I read an interesting fact in an article entitled “The New Socialism” by Kevin Kelly - 60,000 man-years of work were dedicated to last year’s release of Fedora Linux 9. There is proof that without sharing you are spinning your wheels.
There is a great article in the June edition of the Technology Review. Can Technology Save the Economy?, suggests we need to take a deeper look into the stimulus package and how it relates to technology and job creation, in fact this is just part one of two.
The author, David Rotman, does a great job of highlighting both sides of the stimulus package. Will it really create more jobs and more innovation in renewable energy? Is this really the most productive way to spend the money? How long will it take for these technologies to come to life? What if it fails?
There is no arguing the economy needs a boost. Is the way to achieve this is through innovation? “The stimulus bill makes evident to the public what every economist knows: long-term economic growth depends on innovation and technological progress. But including so much technology spending in the legislation also brings dangers.”
We will look forward to part two, in the mean time let me know what you think.
“The Prevalence of User Innovation and Free Innovation Transfers: Implications for Statistical Indicators and Innovation Policy” MIT Sloan Research Paper No. 4722-09 provides many great reasons for policy makers to rethink the transfer of innovation. Eric A. Von Hippel, coauthor from MIT will be visiting the Kauffman Foundation in June to discuss some of his findings related to the research that was done in Canada.
We have just announced our collaboration with the Massachusetts Technology Transfer Center (MTTC), an organization that promotes the efficient and effective transfer of knowledge and technology developed at academic institutions in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
We are very excited to have a partnership with a group of some of the leading academic researchers and universities in the country. They include:
Baystate Health, Inc., Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston Biomedical Research Institute, Boston College, Caritas St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Joslin Diabetes Center, Inc., Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, McLean Hospital, Schepens Eye Research Institute, Tufts University, Tufts-New England Medical Center, University of Massachusetts Medical School, University of Massachusetts- Amherst, University of Massachusetts- Boston, University of Massachusetts- Dartmouth, University of Massachusetts- Lowell.
We are excited to continue partnerships of this kind, if you are interested please contact me at Katie@iBridgeNetwork.org.
The iBridge Network will be on the road next week, April 13-15 in Irvine, CA, to participate in the eighth meeting of the University-Industry Demonstration Partnership (UIDP). If you are unfamiliar with UIDP, but are interested in collaboration, particularly between university and industry participants, you should definitely read on. Founded in 2006, the UIDP originally addressed the complexities of negotiating sponsored research agreements at universities. Given the relative increase in industry contributions to research funding, smooth negotiation of this type of agreement becomes more and more important. (Take a look at the chart from the NSF below). Today, the mission of the University-Industry Demonstration Partnership (UIDP) is to nourish and expand collaborative partnerships between university and industry in the United States. Operational support is provided by the National Academies.
While this will be the first full meeting that I attend, I’ve been to a couple of sessions before, and have been impressed by the deep level of thought and conversation that takes place at these meetings. We will be demonstrating the iBridge Network at the conference, and I will be moderating a panel about Tools and Strategies to Drive the Innovation Agenda. There is plenty to discuss on this topic; I’m looking forward to a lively discussion!
Right after the meeting (on April 15-16), the group also will be hosting an Agreements Negotiation Workshop, focusing on effective strategies for negotiating clinical trials and engineering agreements.
I’m sometimes asked how we develop the strategic direction for the iBridge Network. First off, everything that we do must fit into our vision for the Network,
For people who are passionate about transforming today’s ideas and discoveries into tomorrow’s research, products and services, the iBridge Network is the innovation catalyst that provides a vibrant member community with resources to connect, collaborate and license their work.
This vision was developed back in 2006 by the team at the Kauffman Foundation that founded the iBridge Network. It has been refined over time, but the core of it has remained the same — we exist to help the process of transformation, regardless of where that transformation may lead. Sometimes it will be fabulous new products and services; and, sometimes it will result in furthering the science in a niche field that could be a component of tomorrow’s next discovery. Profit has never been a part of that vision, neither for us, or necessarily for every innovation that may be listed on the Network (even though that type of exchange sometimes definitely can happen for our member universities through the Network.)
There are lots of possible ways to realize the vision for the iBridge Network, so we have a wonderful Strategic Advisory Board that helps guide us in how we use our resources to achieve our vision. We also get suggestions and input from our now 72 member universities, and are always looking for input from our users. If you have suggestions, I’d love to hear them. You can either comment here on this post, or feel free to mail me at feedback@iBridgeNetwork.org. I’m looking forward to hearing from you!
what is the UK innovation strategy as it relates to R&D labs at the federal and university level?
how can US venture investors invest in the UK?
what is the state of deal-flow?
are entrepreneurs emerging with viable business models based on university research?
what are the opportunities for early stage venture funding?
what role do universities play in commercialization of R&D?
and is there an equivalent of Bayh-Dole for the UK?
As we at the iBridge Network look at academic-originated innovation globally, I continue to be fascinated by the vast differences there can be in innovation policy and culture, and how that shapes the behaviors and organizational structures in those countries. Sessions such as this one help shed light on some of the nuances in each country.
This session will be Tuesday, March 17, 2009, 1:00 - 2:30 PM ET, and is free to attend (registration required).
"The iBridge Network provides an important additional pathway for entrepreneurs to access university innovations that may otherwise have been lost. read more...
While this will be the first full meeting that I attend, I’ve been to a couple of sessions before, and have been impressed by the deep level of thought and conversation that takes place at these meetings. We will be demonstrating the 
