Research Commercialization Academy (BETA 0.01)

Author: Richard Nieva

Source: Pando Daily

Interest: NCET2, or the National Council of Entrepreneurial Tech Transfer, is a Washington DC-based organization that seeks to connect startups born out of university research projects with Fortune 1000 companies. The organization works with many of the large research universities, such as MIT, Harvard, and Yale. This fall, the organization is holding a conference in San Francisco called Exit: Startups, an event that seeks to shop startups spun out of university research projects to potential acquirers.

Link: http://pandodaily.com/2013/05/15/for-startups-with-university-roots-an-exit-is-priority-number-one/

Author: http://www.fortmilltimes.com/

Source: http://www.fortmilltimes.com/

Interest: The Institute for the Commercialization of Public Research (the Institute) announced today that it has finalized a funding agreement with NeuroNet Learning, providers of a learning enrichment program designed to help children improve motor skills, language, and information processing. Working with Florida’s research universities and institutions to support new company creation and job growth, the Institute’s Seed Capital Accelerator Program bridges early funding gaps, requiring recipients to ra

Link: http://www.fortmilltimes.com/2013/05/16/2696427/florida-institute-funds-neuronet.html

Author: Lora Kolodny

Source: http://blogs.wsj.com/

Interest: Gathering at the National Venture Capital Association’s VentureScape conference this week, venture and corporate investors met with executives leading top startup accelerators in a crowded session to discuss the health of the “startup ecosystem.” Two main questions on venture investors’ minds: “How do we know if accelerators are succeeding?” And: “Are we in an accelerator bubble?”

Link: http://blogs.wsj.com/venturecapital/2013/05/16/nvca-vcs-talk-accelerator-bubbles-accelerator-success/

Author: Rob Kuznia

Source: http://www.dailybreeze.com/

Interest: A miracle drink to cure hangovers. A cream that brightens the color on tattoos. An ergonomic shovel. A website that cuts the humble car salesman out of the deal. In addition to dreaming up these inventions, students in Loyola Marymount University's new business-incubator class created the prototypes.

Link: http://www.dailybreeze.com/news/ci_23168039/dreaming-big-loyola-marymount-business-students-pitch-products

Author: Kathleen Gallagher

Source: http://www.jsonline.com/

Interest: The Madison office of law firm Perkins Coie LLP is sponsoring a first-ever award with a $10,000 prize for the University of Wisconsin-Madison team that demonstrates the most market-ready innovation. UW-Madison is the fourth campus to be chosen for an Innovative Minds competition. The others are Arizona State University, the University of California-Los Angeles and the University of Washington, Perkins Coie launched the program in 2011 to help advance creative thinking, innovation and entrepren

Link: http://www.jsonline.com/business/perkins-cole-sponsors-10000-innovation-prize-at-uwmadison-competition-q39qj7q-205972371.html

Author: Karsten Strauss

Source: Forbes

Interest: In the age of startup-mania, accelerators, incubators and the constant search for venture capital, Northeastern University is taking a proactive approach to getting would-be founders to an entrepreneurial happy-place.

Link: http://www.forbes.com/sites/karstenstrauss/2013/04/30/getting-serious-about-startups-northeastern-universitys-idea/

Author: http://www.utexas.edu/

Source: http://www.utexas.edu/

Interest: The Global Venture Labs Investment Competition (Global VLIC), the longest-running investment competition for graduate student entrepreneurs, will hold its 30th annual competition May 2-4 at the AT&T Executive Education and Conference Center at The University of Texas at Austin.

Link: http://www.utexas.edu/news/2013/04/30/investor-ready-startups-to-compete-at-global-venture-labs-investment-competition/

Author: Fritz Grupe

Source: http://www.rgj.com/

Interest: Each year, more than $2.3 billion in grants and contracts are awarded by 11 federal agencies such as the U.S. Department of Defense, the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health through the Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs.

Link: http://www.rgj.com/article/20130501/COL0815/305010036/UNR-Funding-available-innovative-startup-companies?nclick_check=1

Author: http://onlineathens.com/

Source: http://onlineathens.com/

Interest: Georgia took steps this week to create a public-backed venture fund aimed at keeping startup companies from fleeing the state when funding dries up. The fund could eventually pump $100 million into innovative new companies, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported on Tuesday.

Link: http://onlineathens.com/local-news/2013-04-30/georgia-takes-steps-boost-venture-capital-fund

Author: The Wall Street Journal

Source: ACC Clean Energy Challenge

Interest: COLLEGE PARK, Md., April 22, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Bioadhesive Alliance Inc., a team from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University developing a bio-based adhesive for potential use as a substitute to petroleum-based asphalt binder, won the second annual ACC Clean Energy Challenge and the Department of Energy's $100,000 grand prize, competition officials announce today.

Link: http://online.wsj.com/article/PR-CO-20130422-909293.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

Author: Northwestern News

Source: http://evanstonnow.com/

Interest: Two business teams founded in Northwestern University’s NUvention entrepreneurship courses took first and second place at the Rice Business Plan Competition this weekend, walking away with more than $1 million combined in cash and investments.

Link: http://evanstonnow.com/story/education/northwestern-news/2013-04-15/55735/nu-teams-win-over-1m-in-business-plan-competition

Author: Laura Baverman

Source: http://www.newsobserver.com/

Interest: Duke University senior Matt Pleatman left campus Thursday night with a large cardboard check for $50,000. The College of Engineering student and creator of the Contact Lens Refresh Card beat out 126 other student-run startup companies for the grand prize in Duke’s 14th annual Start-Up Challenge. And they weren’t light competition.

Link: http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/04/15/2827479/columnist-innovation-begins-with.html

Author: NICHOLAS THOMPSON

Source: www.newyorker.com

Interest: Is Stanford still a university? The Wall Street Journal recently reported that more than a dozen students—both undergraduate and graduate—have left school to work on a new technology start-up called Clinkle. Faculty members have invested, the former dean of Stanford’s business school is on the board, and one computer-science professor who taught several of the employees now owns shares.

Link: http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/elements/2013/04/silicon-valley-start-ups-and-the-end-of-stanford.html

Author: The New York Times

Source: The New York Times

Interest: Educators from nine universities are testing technology from a Silicon Valley start-up company, CourseSmart, allowing them to track their students’ progress with digital textbooks, David Streitfeld reports in The New York Times.

Link: http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/04/09/daily-report-teacher-knows-if-youve-done-the-e-reading/

Author: WRAL Tech Wire

Source: WRAL Tech Wire

Interest: A Duke University student team has the chance to win $50,000 in the 14th annual Duke Start-Up Challenge on April 11. A total of 13 teams will participated in the competition, which will be held in Geneen Auditoriumm at the Fuqua School of Business. The competition is open to the public. The top three teams will have the chance to give an eight-minute investor pitch before a live audience. The remaining 10 teams will give one-minute elevator pitches.

Link: http://wraltechwire.com/student-teams-vie-for-50k-in-duke-start-up-challenge-/12309518/

Author: Nathan Eddy

Source: http://www.eweek.com/

Interest: The organization announced it has selected 295 research and technology proposals from 216 American small businesses for negotiations that may lead to contract awards worth a combined $38.7 million.

Link: http://www.eweek.com/small-business/nasa-reaches-out-to-small-businesses-on-research-technology/

Author: JOSH CONSTINE

Source: http://techcrunch.com

Interest: The SEC today paved the way for a new era of venture capital investing by stating it won’t pursue enforcement action against FundersClub, whose platform lets any accredited investor fund startups in exchange for equity. Before, some thought FundersClub’s founders could face jail time for violating finance laws. FundersClub’s model could be used by others to raise capital online for startups before the JOBS Act goes fully into effect.

Link: http://techcrunch.com/2013/03/28/equity-crowdfunding-sec/

Author: Cromwell Schubarth

Source: Silicon Valley Business Journal

Interest: A study released Monday provides more evidence that there are a lot more startups finding a harder time getting Series A funds than they did in finding seed money. The seed financing survey by the law firm of Fenwick & West said only 27 percent of startups hatched in 2011 landed first round venture money in 2012, compared to 45 percent who launched in 2010 and got later stage funds in 2011.

Link: http://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/news/2013/03/26/new-study-finds-series-a-startup.html

Author: Judy Lowry

Source: Story first appeared in Inventors Digest in March 2013

Interest: Two of the leading organizations in the United States dedicated to promoting academic innovation and entrepreneurship—the National Academy of Inventors (NAI) and the National Council of Entrepreneurial Tech Transfer (NCET2)—have committed to an ongoing collaborative relationship, designed to further their organizations’ missions, by recently signing a memorandum of understanding.

Link: http://www.research.usf.edu/absolute-news/templates/template1.aspx?articleid=1004&zoneid=1

Author: Sam Cholke

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com

Interest: The University of Chicago celebrated the opening of its new Arts Incubator Friday morning in Washington Park, giving new life to a neglected building and new hope that Washington Park will help fulfill the potential of young people interested in art.

Link: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/09/university-of-chicago-was_n_2843965.html