John Chavez is always on the hunt for the next big idea. Literally. The president of the New Mexico Angels and tax secretary to former governor Gary Johnson spends hours each month trolling the research labs of the University of New Mexico, visiting with scientists and their graduate assistants. John knows universities are fertile ground for raw technology with potentially lucrative commercial applications. …
John isn’t the only entrepreneur or investor vetting university research. Venture capitalists routinely walk the labs of Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford University. With those two universities hauling in a combined $142.9 million in licensing income in 2011, the VCs aren’t walking away empty handed.
So how does an entrepreneur gain access to the potentially fertile grounds of university research labs? Here are five suggestions: …
Do your homework. Once you’ve identified universities and researchers of interest, do some homework. All university tech transfer offices have websites that provide basic info. Then google the researchers you’d particularly like to connect with. A growing number of scientists, such as Dr. Brian Benicewicz, a polymer chemist at the University of South Carolina, have comprehensive websites. Benicewicz’s site chronicles his career at Celanese, Ethicon and Los Alamos National Lab; describes his current research and commercial ventures; and introduces his graduate assistants—also potential sources of big ideas.