Riam Kanso is the founder and CEO of Conception X, a non-profit organisation in the UK that helps PhD students develop their entrepreneurial skillsets and launch deeptech startups. She tells us about how Conception X grew out of a pilot programme at University College London, why not taking any equity in the portfolio companies is an advantage and how Conception X’s offering fits into the wider technology transfer ecosystem.

She also discusses Conception X’s partnership with Schmidt Futures and explains why her vision for Conception X is that of an institute.

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Otomar Sláma is the chairman of Charles University Innovations Prague, the commercialisation subsidiary of Charles University, and he joins us today to talk about how his passion led him to become only the second person in the Czech Republic to gain RTTP accreditation and why it will take a societal culture shift to drive entrepreneurship in the country – and why that has led him to support a programme aimed at high-school students.

He also talks about the significance of the newly launched €45m i&i Biotech Fund, backed by the European Investment Fund, and why he considers spinouts a last resort for getting innovations into the marketplace.

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Rohan McDougall is the director of commercialisation at Curtin University and he joins us to discuss the challenges faced by a remote ecosystem such as Perth.

We also talk about driving innovation in a region known for mining – which led to one of Curtin’s most prominent spinouts to date – and what the success of graphic design platform Canva means for the local venture capital scene.

McDougall also tells us about West Tech Fest and explains why Australian startups tend to list early.

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Alexis Dormandy has been the chief executive of Oxford Science Enterprises, the investment company set up by University of Oxford, since January this year and he joins us to talk about the changes he has already enacted (which included rebranding the organisation from its original name of Oxford Sciences Innovation), what he plans to do next (such as surveying the portfolio to understand how to increase diversity) and the importance of building businesses that can rival the Microsofts and Intels of the world.

He also tells us why university venturing is the industry to join today if you want a career that is going to be full of massive opportunities in the years to come and he reveals why missing an opportunity to invest in an Oxford spinout that is now powering through every milestone while he was a partner at Atomico is a prime example of why university venturing needs to exist.

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David Coleman is the chief executive of University of Birmingham Enterprise, and he’s a passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion. That is just one of the topics covered in this interview –he also tells about the importance of MICRA and its ambition to raise a fund, how the TTO has grown over the years and also manages a research park, life science incubator and engages with local entrepreneurs, and why Birmingham is the place where he has ended up staying for more than a decade after working for several other universities previously.

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Itzik Goldwaser is the president and chief executive of Yissum, the technology transfer company of Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and he joins us to discuss how the country’s mandatory army service helps foster an entrepreneurial mindset.

He also tells us about his journey from running a Hebrew University spinout to heading its TTO, how the Israel Innovation Authority helps him do his work and why he still loves getting to the office at 6:30am every day.

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Christy Wyskiel is the executive director of Johns Hopkins Technology Ventures (JHTV), the tech transfer office of Johns Hopkins University, and senior adviser to the president for innovation and entrepreneurship.

She reveals why she is so passionate about the Baltimore ecosystem that she goes above and beyond her day job and talks about why having run her own startups gives her a real appreciation for the hardships of first-time entrepreneurs.

She also discusses what JHTV is doing to support diversity, why the Johns Hopkins Covid Dashboard is a true example of research for the world and why JHTV has a clause in its licensing agreements that requires spinouts to inform the office of every funding round they raise.

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Tim Boyle is the director of innovation and commercialisation at nuclear research institute ANSTO and the chair of ATTP, the global body responsible for RTTP accreditation. He joins us to talk about what makes ANSTO different and how a chance encounter on Imperial College London’s campus pushed him into a career in tech transfer.

He also talks about why RTTP is so important to the tech transfer profession, why candidate RTTP was introduced and why offices with a high number of RTTP-accredited staff are the ones who receive more job applications.

Applications for the current cycle of RTTP applications are open until October 14 and can be made on ATTP’s website.

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Christina Takke is a managing partner of V-Bio Ventures, a venture capital firm she co-founded to invest in spinouts from research institute VIB and other promising companies across Europe. She tells us why she helped set up V-Bio Ventures, why it is qualitative money that is missing in continental Europe and what can be done to improve the gender ratio in venture capital.

She also discusses what it was like to start raising a fund during the pandemic and why the large amount of due diligence required by the European Investment Fund enabled V-Bio Ventures to attract more limited partners.

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Rich Chylla is the executive director of MSU Technologies, the tech transfer office of Michigan State University. He joins us on Talking Tech Transfer to discuss the importance of collaboration across institutions and countries, as well as tell us more about his experience of being a chair of AUTM, why MSU Foundation plays a crucial role in his job and why “flyover country” is an unfair – if sometimes all too persistent – description of Michigan.

He also talks about his experience of chairing PraxisAuril, the importance of SETsquared for Exeter’s ecosystem and his views of the European ecosystem. This interview was recorded before Sean moved into his new job, which is still with Exeter: he has joined the senior executive to implement programmes linked to its 2030 strategy.

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