Universities should consider waiving any claims to stakes in spin-out companies formed by students in order to improve their chances of success, a public policy think tank has argued.
Where academic staff seek to commercialise intellectual property developed using their employer’s time and facilities, the stakes sought by universities should be no more than 10 per cent — less than half the current average — the Social Market Foundation (SMF) said.
Its recommendations come as the Treasury and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology prepare to receive the findings of an independent review of how universities launch companies from academic research.
It is chaired by Irene Tracey, vice-chancellor of the University of Oxford, and Andrew Williamson, managing partner of Cambridge Innovation Capital. They are
