A discovery initiative in university tech transfer
University IP should launch companies, not bottleneck them.
We are benchmarking how leading research universities handle intellectual property, faculty equity, and spinout formation — then using it to build a practical case for policy that incentivizes professors to commercialize their work, instead of pushing the best researchers out of the system to do it elsewhere.
Prepping for the meeting? Use the live discovery workbook to take voice or typed notes and get an instant gap analysis.
Three problems this work is trying to solve
Benchmark what actually works
Tech transfer offices vary enormously in speed, licensing terms, and founder-friendliness. We compare the models that demonstrably produce spinouts against ones that produce filing cabinets, so any university can adopt what works.
Make starting a company the easy path
Professors need clear equity terms, fast express licenses, and a defined path from lab notebook to founder — not a multi-year negotiation. We lay out incentive structures that make commercialization the default, not the exception.
Keep the best people inside the system
When IP terms are too rigid, the strongest researchers quietly leave to build elsewhere, or never disclose an invention at all. Good policy should retain talent and ideas inside the university, not push them out the door.
Where this starts: Emory University School of Medicine
The first real-world discovery interview for this project tests the benchmarking framework against how a major academic medical center actually handles physician-scientist IP, licensing, and spinout support today.
The goal is not to critique any one institution. It's to use a live conversation to sharpen a framework that other universities, tech transfer offices, and founding faculty can actually use.
View the full discovery question guideWhat the study covers
- 01IP ownership models and how much control faculty founders actually retain
- 02Equity, royalty, and licensing structures across peer research universities
- 03Time-to-license and disclosure friction as leading indicators of spinout volume
- 04Faculty incentive design — sabbaticals, dual roles, gap funding, and career credit for founding
- 05A University of Nebraska case study on running tech transfer like an investor, not a licensing desk
- 06A proposed evergreen investment fund and venture home so founders never have to choose between the lab and the company
Free benchmarking report
Benchmark Your University Now
Answer a structured survey for up to 5 universities and get a scored gap analysis, McKinsey-style ranking charts, and a strategic recommendation — built on the same signals used throughout this study.
Are you a professor, researcher, or TTO staff member?
Tell us what you're working on, or where your university's IP process is helping or hurting. It shapes the next version of the study.