gaudenzi death valley of innovation

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Università di Roma “La Sapienza” – Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e Aerospaziale

The death valley of innovation

The methaphor and some comments from the field

Prof. Paolo Gaudenzi

Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e Aerospaziale

“Life & p ath o f an innov ative project in

France

Or the inno vat ion chain from idea to

development”

Rome Feb 3, 2015

Facolta di Ingegneria Civile e Industriale



Università di Roma ―La Sapienza‖ – Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e Aerospaziale

P. Gaudenzi The death valley of innovation

DEATH VALLEY





The Valley of Death of innovation:

A Desert Between Research outcomes and the Market (or the profit)

The development of our global society is currently based on innovation.What is innovation?

1 The action or process to making changes in something established, especially byintroducing new methods, ideas or products. (source: Oxford Dictionary)

2 The process of t ranslat ing an id ea or invention into a good or service than createsvalue for which customer will pay. To be called an innovation, an idea must bereplicable at an economical cost and must sat isfy a sp ecif ic need.(source: Businessdictionary.com)

It is clear that the novelty is introduced in a context, a specific environment, that mightbe a market, that recognizes the introduction of something new.

Innovation is not a synonimous of discovery (find, learn of, or observe something for the first

time) or of invent ion (to produce something previously unknown by the use of ingenuity or

imagination) but of course a discovery or an invention might be the sources for an innovation.





Discovery

Invention

Initial

Product orService

concept

Research andDevelopment

Innovation

New Productor Service

Utilisation

and sales

Creativity Hard Work Reward





Why a valley of death?

In technology transfer, the valley of death is the metaphor often used todescribe the gap between academic-based innovations and their commercial

application in the marketplace. The valley of death suggests that the practiceis anything but smooth.

As a metaphor, the valley of death suggests that the path between academicinnovation and its commercial application is a perilous and life threateningone at best. Indeed, regardless of its merit, an innovation’s success is nevercertain—many obstacles, including monetary resources, can stand in the way.

(source: K.E. Gulbrandsen Bridging the valley of death: The rhetoric of technologytransfer, PhD Thesis, 2009 Univ Iowa)

The valley of death refers to financial risks that start-ups face as they struggle

to grow from small teams to going ventures. The dip of the valley refers to thedebt —the negative balance sheets—that companies experience as theyinvest money now in hopes of making it back upon success.

(source: Into the Valley of Death, A. Hargadon, 2011 University of California at Davis)





DEATH VALLEY 2


http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/gaudenzi-death-valley-of-innovation 7/23Università di Roma ―La Sapienza‖ – Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e Aerospaziale


Why we are here at this seminar?

“Life & path of an inno vat ive project in France Or the inno vat ion chain from idea to development”

Communities are increasingly looking to their regional governments and universitiesto implement programs that stimulate the local economy.

This community expectation is especially vocal when regions are trying to overcomean economic downturn (e.g. the post dot-com bust), or stimulate a particularly

promising industry (e.g. nanotechnology).

In response to these heightened outcries, government leaders eagerly assemble a

plan corresponding to taxpayer-derived funding. Leveraging universities is

frequently a key component of this solution.

How to go through or to cross the death valley? What governments can do to

implement the best policies for innovation?

To go where?




From the death valley to another valley… let us have a look to California

We would like to move from the death valley to… Silicon Valley!

From uncertain venture to successful business and growth!




FROM HERE: DEATH VALLEY




SILICON VALLEY




A field of opportunities for development: finding the valley of success!

The example of MIT and Stanford

Research- and technology-intensive universities, especially via their entrepreneurial

spinoffs, have a dramatic impact on the economies of the United States.

MIT and the Boston area: A direct extrapolation of the underlying survey data booststhe numbers to 25,800 currently active companies founded by MIT alumni thatemploy about 3.3 million people and generate annual world revenues of $2 trillion,producing the equivalent of the eleventh-largest economy in the world.

(source: Entrepreneurial Impact: The Role of MIT, E. B. Roberts and C. EesleyMIT Sloan School of Management, February 2009)

Stanford and the silicon valley : Stanford University has long been known as one ofthe world's leading centers for innovation and a breeding ground for theentrepreneurs who created – and continue to shape – Silicon Valley. The companiesformed by Stanford entrepreneurs generate world revenues of $2.7 trillion annuallyand have created 5.4 million jobs since the 1930s. The equivalent of the world's 10th largest economy.(source Stanford University’s Economic impact via Innovation and

Entrepreneurship, C. Eesley, 2011, Stanford Alumni)

P. E. Auerswald, Lewis M. Branscomb, Valleys of Death and Darwinian Seas: Financing the

Invention to Innovation Transition in the United States, Journal of Technology Transfer, 28,

227 –239, 2003, (Kennedy School of Governement at Harward University)




Bridging the gap, crossing the desert is the challenge in front of us to the valley

of development.

- The methaphor of the valley of death might frighthen us and discourage to proceedto innovation but on the other side make us aware of the difficulties, the risks, the

threats.

- Also if the figures of MIT and Stanford may be overestimated and seem to be reallyexcessive, they also send a very clear message of opportunity.

It would be maybe good to try to make a measure of the impact of La Sapienza insociety following the same approach, also if the differences are clear in terms of thecontexts, the society, the rules and the role of Universities in Europe versus the American case.

But the point is today that to better exploit the potential of innovation in the

European context and better understand the good models, policies andpractices, like the French ones.

Among other considerations two factors might make this a real opportunity:1. Natural cultural tendency in Italy to entrepreneurship2. Presence of consistent research centers universities a treasure largely

unexploited




We might have a more optimistic view!

Look at the valley – still a desert – with another approach!

But let us enter the field now… since I promised some comments

from there…





Let us go through the desert! Let us do start our (ad)venture!





What I need?

What to take with me?

- Water- Food- Shelter- Adequate suits (hat)

- Map- Binoculars- Way of transportation

- Smart phone (GPS, etc)

- Access to web

My goal/motivation

- Survive- Reach an oasis- Have fun/adventure- Reach the other side

Weakness/threats

Alone or in a team

Duration of the adventure

Information on the environment

Uncertainties

The adventure





What I need?

- Value proposition- Business plan

- Organization- Financial resources- Human resources

- infrastructures

- Access to information- Communication

- Partnership

My goal/motivation

- Survive- Reach the market- Have revenues- Reach the b/e point: profit

Weakness/threats

Alone or in a team

Duration of the venture

Information on the environment

Uncertainties

The venture



A Spin-Off Companyof the "Università di Roma La Sapienza"

Smart Structures

Solutions srl





My company is now right into the valley… Will we survive? Will we reach the valley of our success?

Smart Structures Solutions is a company that works in the field of Structural

Health Monitoring, with the aim of developing innovative solutions formonitoring critical system parameters, based on the integration of local

sensing and space data.

Structural Health Monitoring is an horizontal field, due to the fact that the need

of keeping under monitoring critical mechanical elements is common to many

industrial sectors (Telco & Broadcast, Energy, Oil & Gas, Transportation and so

on) with the purpose of risk reduction and better and lower cost maintenance

activities.





Smart Structures Solutions has developed know-how in developing andmanufacturing custom-made sensor network solutions and

architectures with experience in the field of Telecom towersmonitoring. (Pictures below from the experimental campaign on

Raiway Tower of Monte Mario)

Environmental

Node

Structural

Node

StructuralNode

EnvironmentalNode

GPSNode

Main node(data collection and TLC)





Structural Health Monitoring for Telecom Towers

• Project: “Structural Health Monitoring for

Telecom Towers” ARTES 20 (IAP) FeasibilityStudy, ESA Contract Number:4000108290/13/NL/US

• Objectives: – Assessing of the structural integrity of

towers for Radio-TV Broadcasting to

increase safety and to optimize themaintenance procedures.

– promoting the transition from a time-based maintenance to a condition-basedone.

• The key point: – the integration of several existing

technologies such as structural healthmonitoring and wireless sensor networkswith existing space services in order toenhance the proposed service withinnovative capabilities.





Where are we now? Right into the valley!

Are we well

equipped?Hope so!

1 Value proposition2 Business plan3 Patent deposit

4 Partnership forIndustrializationandCommercialization

Where would we like to be?- In three months from now in Las Vegas at one of

the largest world fair for our candidate market!

- But… With your help!



Università di Roma “La Sapienza” – Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica e Aerospaziale

The death valley of innovation

The methaphor and some comments from the field

Prof. Paolo Gaudenzi

Dipartimemto di Ingegneria Meccanica e Aerospaziale

“Life & p ath o f an innov ative project in

France

Or the inno vat ion chain from idea to

development”

Rome Feb 3, 2015

Facolta di Ingegenria Civile e Industriale

gaudenzi death valley of innovation

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