Deep-tech startups: from academic know how to commercial viability

By Joseph MariathasanSeptember 2024 (Magazine)

Many would argue that universities have been set up in the pursuit of knowledge for its own sake, so perhaps the idea of seeking commercial applications for university research detracts from the beauty of that ideal. That certainly was the attitude in Oxford when I completed my own doctorate in physics four decades ago. But times have changed and the UK, and Europe more generally, is desperate to encourage the growth of innovative companies that can rival those being churned out in the US.