And the evidence makes it clear that the way it works in the UK isn’t the way it has to be. The Netherlands and Germany are getting their act together, and the Nordics are far ahead of us: in 93% of Nordic deals, universities took 0% equity thanks to Professor’s Privilege.
AI
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Unhappy Alumni: 65% of Founders Won’t Donate
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We also find that 65% of founders don't plan to become donors back to their alma matter. Unhappy alumni = no donors.
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Founder Donations Correlate with School Permissiveness and Equity Retention
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And here we see interesting correlations: a) Founders who donate come from schools that were more permissive and faster. b) Founders who don't donate parted ways with more equity and had a slower time spinning out. I've repeatedly made this point so hopefully this data helps.
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UK Universities Demand Board Seats in Tech Spinouts
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Alongside high equity stakes, a growing number of UK TTOs are now breaking with convention and demanding board seats – and in some cases, selecting senior management.
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Speed and Value Capture: What Founders Really Want
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Fast and permissive = founders love you. Slow and value-capture focused = founders aren't fans.
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University Equity Policies and Founder-Friendly Support Comparison
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And it's not a surprise to see that universities that take the lowest % equity (as a proxy for being permissive and founder friendly) receive the best founder reviews as you'll see on the next slide.
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TTOs Tactics: Avoiding Real AI Debate and Data Discussion
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What hasn’t changed is the TTOs. Whether it’s the reports, the rebuttals, or the ‘TenU compromise’ – their tactics have stayed the same: Swerving the real debate, calling data anecdotal, and embracing the tyranny of low expectations.
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University Tech Transfer Offices Fail Founders With Negative Score
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But what we’re hearing from over 200 founders in over 100 universities across the world is clear. The process is a failure. TTOs have a net promoter score of -52 (worse than most high street banks, or retail energy companies).
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TTOs Hindering Academic Spinout Founders: V2 Dataset Analysis
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I spoke to @timmpsmith at @Siftedeu about the new @spinoutfyi V2 dataset release. This year, we have twice as many respondents (and twice as many op-eds) all pointing to the same thing: TTOs are continuing to hold back founders through the spinout process.
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UK Labour Review Shapes Startup Funding and VC Policy Reform
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Let’s start with what's new: Germany and the Netherlands explore reform and academic research in the UK confirms that high uni equity stakes drive VCs away from spinouts. Labour’s Start-up Review adopted many of our proposals and the gov launched a long overdue policy review.