Why did you start your spin-out?

First and foremost to get new music and audio technologies into the hands of creators. Even the most wide-ranging research agenda can only reach a fraction of the community that a company can address. TouchKeys aims to expand creative possibilities for keyboard players without requiring them to learn an entirely new instrument.

What piece of advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurial academics?

Get out there and try something on whatever scale is achievable. You’ll gain enormous practical experience getting your research into the hands of even a handful of users, and you’ll learn a lot of valuable skills along the way. Don’t worry about having the perfect idea or the grandest possible scope from day 1, just look for opportunities that you can reach and see where they take you.

Why did you start your spin-out?

First and foremost to get new music and audio technologies into the hands of creators. Even the most wide-ranging research agenda can only reach a fraction of the community that a company can address. Bela aims to change the way we create interactive systems through powerful yet easy-to-use open-source tools.

What piece of advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurial academics?

Get out there and try something on whatever scale is achievable. You’ll gain enormous practical experience getting your research into the hands of even a handful of users, and you’ll learn a lot of valuable skills along the way. Don’t worry about having the perfect idea or the grandest possible scope from day 1, just look for opportunities that you can reach and see where they take you.

Why did you start your spin-out?

I am passionate about impact from research. For me, its not enough to just write a paper and hope that it gets read and cited. I’m inspired by seeing research make it all the way from proof-of-concept to product, or in some other sense making a difference. Entrepreneurship is a great way to achieve that aim.

What piece of advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurial academics?

Firstly, the goals of entrepreneurship and academic research are not contradictory. One can publish papers, create open source code and share knowledge while still protecting IP. In fact, academic impact can promote the commercial offerings. Secondly, QMUL offers tremendous support to start-ups and the teams behind them. They’ve supported me on the journey at all stages. So, if you’re interested in commercialising research, its really worth contacting Queen Mary Innovation. Finally, it can be a really rewarding experience. Entrepreneurship is challenging and risky, but absolutely wonderful when it succeeds.

Why did you start your spin-out?

I started Kinomica because I thought we had the potential to help treat cancer patients with the most appropriate anti-cancer drug out of the several different treatments now available. My research team and I had been developing this technology over the last 15 years, but without further development this was just academic. We needed a vehicle to develop these approaches into tests that can actually bring benefit to patients. Kinomica is now developing these tests in a way that one day, in the not-so-distant future, will enable clinicians to make a more informed decision on the best-suited treatment for a given patient.

What piece of advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurial academics?

My advice to entrepreneurial academics is to keep believing in your ideas despite inevitable setbacks, and keep persevering.

Why did you start your spin-out?

I was primarily motivated by the potential of my research to have greater impact, beyond just academic publications, and I wanted to see how my research can be used to make a real difference to daily life. I was influenced by the question my PhD advisor asked me some 40 years ago, “Surely good research is more than just publishing?”.

What piece of advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurial academics?

Be perseverant, adaptive, detail-orientated and always in control of expectations. On perseverance, two quips from old colleagues that have stuck with me are, “Research is only 3% and making it work is 97%” and “If you haven’t failed at least 5 times you haven’t even tried”. I think these are both correct and linked. Having been involved in four start-ups since 1998, I can tell you none were without many failures. On adaptiveness, let facts lead where you go, not pre-conceptions leading where you want to go. On details, know them and not just the big picture stuff, and don’t assume others will know them for you. On expectations, promise less, deliver more, do what you promise, and do the hard stuff.

Why did you start your spin-out?

A major toothpaste manufacturer took an option to license our patent, but even after a number of years they didn’t do anything with it. I wanted to see our research on fluoride bioactive glasses translated into products and setting up a spin-out was the best way to achieve this in the end.

What piece of advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurial academics?

Good science is not enough. Costs and profit margins are critical for business success. Remember, it’s a marathon, not a sprint, and there will be many setbacks and low points. The highpoints are good though, including prizes, TV appearances and my personal favourite – a picture of myself with the BioMin F Toothpaste on a billboard in China!

Why did you start a spin-out company?

It is very satisfying to see academic research translate into beneficial technology. It is surely the purpose of academic research in science and engineering to produce technologies of benefit to society. Some may take longer than others to translate, so when the opportunities arise, we should try to exploit them.

What piece of advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurial academics?

You must be able to answer this question – what value does your technology bring to the customer? Who are the customers and how will you get your technology to them? Our company’s moto is ‘making it big by keeping it small’. This not only refers to the underlying science but also to the company strategy; get as far as you can with as few resources as necessary to build value before needing investment. Choose the people involved very carefully, a successful technology is of no use if it does not make a successful business. Academics rarely have both science and business acumen, so finding partners that understand the market for your technology is a key to success.

Why did you start your spin-out?

I am passionate about impact from research. For me, its not enough to just write a paper and hope that it gets read and cited. I’m inspired by seeing research make it all the way from proof-of-concept to product, or in some other sense making a difference. Entrepreneurship is a great way to achieve that aim.

What piece of advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurial academics?

Firstly, the goals of entrepreneurship and academic research are not contradictory. One can publish papers, create open source code and share knowledge while still protecting IP. In fact, academic impact can promote the commercial offerings. Secondly, QMUL offers tremendous support to start-ups and the teams behind them. They’ve supported me on the journey at all stages. So, if you’re interested in commercialising research, its really worth contacting Queen Mary Innovation. Finally, it can be a really rewarding experience. Entrepreneurship is challenging and risky, but absolutely wonderful when it succeeds.

Why did you start your spin-out?

I started Warblr because my research found that machine learning had reached the right readiness level to help people identify bird sounds. With my co-founder Florence Wilkinson we see the Warblr app as a digital way to engage people with nature and the sounds all around them!

Why did you start your spin-out?

Retroscreen, now hVIVO, was one of the first medical school companies, which I cofounded with an external business-oriented scientist. The idea was to help formalise collaborations with pharmaceutical companies when we first started screening for anti-HIV drugs. The company has since expanded into clinical trials, hence the name change.

What piece of advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurial academics?

I would advise interested academics to consider bringing in commercial expertise early on. We benefitted greatly from the appointment of two well-experienced advisors who helped raise finance. I enjoyed my time as Scientific Director, but a company has a life of its own and is a lot different from running research grants!

Why did you start a spin-out company?

I started Keratify because there were limitations with human skin testing and I knew I had a good concept that could resolve the key issues globally. Publishing on its own would not achieve that level of outreach. As a researcher, I’ve always been naturally drawn to translational and industry-funded research. I wanted to run my own business, thought there was a strong commercial opportunity, and the timing was right both personally and in terms of support to kick-start the business.

What advice would you give to aspiring academic entrepreneurs?

Work out how you can generate revenue as quickly as possible. There is a huge focus on achieving investment rounds or winning grant funding with university spin-outs; this is great initially but it doesn’t form a sustainable business on its own. Be prepared to work fast and iterate as you go – perfection is not the key, desirable and good enough will provide the platform to reach perfection.