Industry-University Partnerships are crucial for fostering innovation, addressing societal challenges, and driving economic growth. By working together, universities and industries can leverage their unique strengths to create solutions that benefit society as a whole. Today, I'm excited to be joined by an amazing panel of guests, Dr. Gayathri Srinivasan, Shahila Christie, and John D. Wilson, to discuss taking a holistic approach to these partnerships.

Dr. Gayathri Srinivasan is the Executive Director of MIT Corporate Relations, a position she has held since the beginning of February 2024. As Executive Director, Gayathri leads the growth of the Industrial Liaison Program (ILP) and the Startup Exchange, building on a roster of over 200 member companies and forging impactful connections between global business leaders and MIT faculty.

John D. Wilson is the Director of Academic Contracting at GlaxoSmithKline. John's responsibilities include aligning industrial and academic research to ensure that science, technology, and people collaborate to benefit scientific development. John sits within a research externalization group that liaisons with all research units and therapeutic areas across his organization, as well as globally.

Shahila Christie began her career in academic research focusing on small molecule drug discovery and development. Recognizing the potential for commercialization, Shahila transitioned to the entrepreneurial space by co-founding a spin-off company leveraging her research. She has consulted for university-based startups and led clinical efforts for a medical diagnostics company in oncology. In her current role at Portal Innovations, she supports the growth and development of early-stage life science technologies.

I’m excited to have Gayathri, Shahila, and John with us today to talk about these crucial partnerships. 

In This Episode:

[03:02] Holistic Industry University partnership is looking at the entire Institute and enterprise for the collaboration. Research, innovation, students, and education.

[05:25] It represents a collaborative effort that spans beyond the simple technology licensing. It's a multifaceted approach that is designed to nurture.

[06:30] Approaching things as a good partner who wants to collaborate and develop science is critical.

[07:19] Identifying common goals is key for collaboration. Understanding where partners are looking for opportunities and what the challenges are is very important.

[09:56] When addressing significant societal challenges for the public good. look at what your company is good at and what the academic is good at and be proactive about reaching out and solving the issues.

[12:09] It's important to be proactive, not reactive.

[13:58] Industries are well versed in knowing where the market needs are. Universities should tap into this space to leverage their capabilities and drive Innovation forward.

[16:43] The expertise is in the academic centers and pharma is really good at developing drugs. Cutting-edge technology is coming out of academic centers and working together is the best choice for creating new drugs and solutions.

[21:23] Startups in the university ecosystem are so important for this type of development.

[24:01] Best practices for creating and maintaining communication during these crucial partnerships.

[25:33] Having a dedicated point person to champion between the two institutions is key.

[27:53] Looking for ways to leverage federal money, university input, and matching dollars from industry to develop future scientists.

[30:44] Look at societal problems and which Industries and companies are suited to solve those problems. 

[34:03] We talk about sharing information to develop better technology. 

[34:42] Shahila talks about how VC firms analyze investment opportunities. They evaluate university partnerships through a multifaceted lens that includes assessing the technology's potential and the university's tech transfer capabilities.

[36:45] VC firms play a vital role in bridging the gap between university technologies and their successful commercializations.

[39:17] Key considerations for pharma companies evaluating partnerships include alignment.

[44:33] For large societal questions, large partnerships and collaborations will be the answer. Government support, university research and innovation, industry collaboration and support, and the market.

[45:54] Science is moving quickly and entering a transformative era. Rapid innovation is driving pharma to look more at early stage technology.

[47:11] If the academic industry and VC work together, there will be an exponential increase in our capabilities.

Resources: 

Dr. Gayathri Srinivasan Executive Director of MIT Corporate Relations

Dr. Gayathri Srinivasan LinkedIn

John D. Wilson, MS, RTTP LinkedIn

Shahila Christie LinkedIn