Brad Feld has high praise for the Deshpande Center for Technological Innovation at MIT. He feels "it’s an awesome example of a university program that funds novel, early-stage research, connects innovators with the business creation infrastructure – including VCs and entrepreneurs – and actively helps new startups to be created out of fundamental early stage research".
Arun Natarajan is the Editor of Venture Intelligence India, which tracks venture capital activity in India and Indian-founded companies worldwide. View sample issues of TSJ Media's Venture Intelligence India newsletters and reports.
As the Deshpande Center enters their fourth grant cycle, they just released the data on what happened with research teams that they have funded to date.
* 44 teams have been funded since 2002
* $4.9m of grant money has been awarded
* 9 companies have been formed
* $23m of angel and first round VC funding has occurred
* 7 other teams are forming new companies and actively raising money
This is an incredible hit rate – 20% of the teams have already started companies and 36% of the teams that received grants have either started or are starting companies. Congrats to all these teams, Charles Cooney (MIT Professor) and Krisztina Holly (Deshpande Center Executive Director), and Desh and Jaishree Deshpande who underwrote the program.
Arun Natarajan is the Editor of Venture Intelligence India, which tracks venture capital activity in India and Indian-founded companies worldwide. View sample issues of TSJ Media's Venture Intelligence India newsletters and reports.