What are special challenges/aspects of entrepreneurship at technical universities in Europe? Hervé Lebret - July 7th 2015 EPFL INNOGRANTS & SUPPORT TO START-UPS http://vpiv.epfl.ch/innogrants http://vpiv.epfl.ch/entrepreneurship
THE INNOVATION DILEMMA I read occasionally about attempts to set up "technology parks" in other places, as if the active ingredient of Silicon Valley were the office space. An article about Sophia Antipolis bragged that companies there included Cisco, Compaq, IBM, NCR, and Nortel. Don't the French realize these aren't startups? Paul Graham How to be Silicon Valley? Few startups happen in Miami, for example, because although it's full of rich people, it has few nerds. It's not the kind of place nerds like. Whereas Pittsburgh has the opposite problem: plenty of nerds, but no rich people. Innovation Challenges 2
A RICH ECOSYSTEM http://vpiv.epfl.ch/resources-for-startups An exhaustive description is available online http://vpiv.epfl.ch/files/content/sites/vpiv/files/shared/vpiv/pdf/innogrants.pdf http://vpiv.epfl.ch/files/content/sites/vpiv/files/shared/vpiv/pdf/innovation-around-epfl.pdf EPFL Ecosystem 3
FUNDING: THE EPFL VALLEY OF DEATH TTO Enable accelerating TT Start-Up foundation Research Grants Development Grants Preseed Grants Friends, Family & Fools Business Angels, Seed VCs Early Stage VCs, Corp. Partners Late Stage VCs ( M&A / IPO) Valley of Death Basic Research Applied Research Proof of Concept / Business Case Prototype Founders Prototype Founders Product Development Company Fast Growth (Revenues, Employees) EPFL Ecosystem : funding 4
IT S NOT ABOUT MONEY ONLY: A RICH AND DENSE ECOSYSTEM Advice: Exposure networks: Housing: A to D E to J Start-Up foundation Research Grants Development Grants Preseed Grants Friends, Family & Fools Business Angels, Seed VCs Early Stage VCs, Corp. Partners Late Stage VCs ( M&A / IPO) Valley of Death Basic Research Applied Research Proof of Concept / Business Case Prototype Founders Prototype Founders Product Development Company Fast Growth (Revenues, Employees) Ecosystems: not just funding 5
What should our ambition be? Initial focus Nb of firms Enabling / encouraging Not our mission We have no control Nb of employees per firm What for? 6
ANY START-UP PROJECT TAKES TIME As of 2014, more than 25M in funding, more than 100 employees, www.nexthink.com Pedro Bados (Nexthink) is a just one but clear illustration that even a friendly ecosystem will not avoid a long maturation. Jun 04: Loan of CHF100k Jul. 07: 2nd round CHF 6M Mar 04-Jun 04: coaching PSE financed by EPFL April 06: 1st round CHF 1.6M May 04: publication in Dialogue newsletter Janv. 04: contact with an IT expert Sept 03: Invention disclosure March 04: Option for License April 04: Patent filing Déc. 04: Winner of the startup competition Avril-Sept 04: Further coaching Sept 04: foundation of NEXThink SA Jan 05: 1st pilots with customers Dec 04: contacts with VCs Generate Develop Launch Grow Projects take time & need ambition 7
A BET ON (YOUNG) TALENT Young Entrepreneurs 8
Role models http://vpiv.epfl.ch/ventureideas 9
Why are Role Models & Mentors Important? Look around who the heroes are. They aren t lawyers, nor are they even so much the financiers. They re the guys who start companies Robert Noyce Entrepreneurs support 10
THINKING INTERNATIONAL EARLY Going International 11
THE ENTREPRENEURSHIP CHALLENGES : SUPPORT, SUPPORT, SUPPORT! Understand the start-up unique culture and dynamics (at the professor, student and administration level) Encourage people who try with no stigma for failure Need for an ecosystem with the right attitude and ambition Find the right/good mentors and role models Adequate financial and human resources Think international and growth from day one (to balance the lack of local critical mass we will never have a Silicon Valley) and Silicon Valley remains and will remain the technology hub (which needs to be known & understood) The challenges are less about infrastructure and more about culture The challenges 12
DRINK LOCAL, THINK GLOBAL (IN CASE YOU ARE NOT CONVINCED YET) Global thinking 13