IU convenes Big Ten university technology transfer managers
INDIANAPOLIS - Indiana University has convened Big Ten university technology transfer managers for a two-day meeting in Chicago that could help make the Midwest a stronger technology commercialization center.
Creative ways to support technology development and start-up formation, funding partnerships, and working with industry are among the issues that will be explored during the two-day second annual Technology Commercialization Roundtable Oct. 3 to 4.
The meeting will enable representatives of Big Ten schools as well as the University of Chicago to share what they see occurring with commercialization of university research, including sharing best practices, said Tony Armstrong, president and CEO of the Indiana University Research and Technology Corporation.
Established in 1997, the IURTC is a not-for-profit agency that assists IU faculty and researchers in realizing the commercial potential of their discoveries. It works to protect the rights of the inventor, the university, and any investors by obtaining the necessary patents and copyrights for university-owned discoveries and to meet the university’s intellectual property obligations to any research sponsors. It also helps market inventors' discoveries for commercial use, either by licensing it to an existing company or helping them starting up their own.
In addition to assisting faculty and researchers with patents and licensing agreements, the IURTC and IU have established other programs, including the Innovate Indiana Fund, which invests in companies originating from Indiana University and helps them to achieve commercial success.
While there have been various meetings of Big Ten officers, technology managers at the schools had not come together until a year ago when IU initiated the first Technology Commercialization Roundtable
“We now have a network of peer institutions that can reach out to each other and ask questions. It helps us connect the dots and let each other know what is going on,” Armstrong said. “Hopefully, by working together we can help make the Midwest a stronger commercialization center.”
