What does it take to turn scientific research into a successful company? At Scientific Entrepreneurship Day, experts tackled that question from three critical angles: understanding customer demand, committing to building the business and getting the legal foundations right.
- Market demand should guide development. Exhaust the research opportunities in the lab, but engage potential customers before the product is fully developed.
- Founder equity requires full-time commitment. Technical inventors should lead early-stage spinouts, but equity must reflect a long-term, full-time commitment to building the business.
- Strong IP and legal foundations are essential. Secure patent protection before publishing academic research, assign intellectual property to the startup and maintain accurate corporate records from day one.
Hosted by Edmonton Unlimited in collaboration with the University of Alberta and Amii, the day featured insights from Celesta Capital and Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP on the decisions researchers face as they move from scientific discovery to commercialization.
The event also builds on a new partnership between the University of Alberta and Celesta Capital, announced in September to help researchers turn discoveries into companies through investment expertise, industry connections and commercialization support.
Evaluating Whether, When, and How to Spin Out Lab Research
Charles Lespérance and David Goldman, partners at Celesta Capital, a global deep tech venture capital firm with an expanding focus in Canada, built their keynote around three core questions: whether a technology should be spun out at all, when to make the move, and how to set the new venture up to succeed. Lespérance, Celesta’s Montreal-based partner, previously co-founded BDC’s $200 million Deep Tech Venture Fund, while Goldman brings expertise in deep-tech transactions, strategy and startup growth.
Evaluating the potential of a spin out comes down to commercial tests including addressable market size, the performance advantage over the current standard, and a credible path to volume production. Determining the right time depends on key readiness conditions like founder preparedness to work on the company full-time, and a clear engineering path from research to product. And setting it up for success requires building the foundations of the company itself, such as IP, a strong management team, the right investors, and more.
The fundamental question underlying all of these topics is this: Does someone actually need what you’ve invented?
The Customer Changes Everything
A technology can represent years of extraordinary research and still be far from something a customer will buy.
Commercialization requires understanding what customers need, what they’ll pay for and how a solution fits into their operations. Sometimes that means removing expensive features, simplifying the technology or rethinking the business model.
Researchers know what their technology can do. Customers reveal what it needs to do. Those conversations can redirect development, uncover opportunities and prevent founders from spending years building something the market doesn’t want.
And interest alone isn’t enough. Letters of intent, paid development work and early revenue provide stronger evidence of demand than positive feedback.
The discussion also raised another question: Who should build the company?
The inventor may be best positioned to lead early on, when technical development and customer feedback are closely connected. But becoming a founder doesn’t necessarily mean leaving academia.
Researchers can continue advancing the science while others run the business. Those leaders still need a strong technical understanding of what’s being built and how it responds to customer needs.
Founder equity also needs to reflect commitment, not simply credit for the original invention. The people taking responsibility for building and operating the company over the long term need ownership that aligns with that work.
Finding the right balance between scientific expertise, business leadership and sustained commitment is critical.
The Decisions You Make Early Matter Later
Jacob Young and Jean-Nicolas Delage, partners in Osler’s Emerging and High Growth Companies group, brought a legal perspective. Delage specializes in intellectual property strategy, licensing and transactions, while Young advises founders on corporate governance, venture financing and exits.
Their message was clear: decisions made long before a startup’s first investment can determine whether it’s ready to raise capital.
Intellectual property ownership, founder equity and legal agreements may not be the most compelling parts of starting a company, but mistakes can create serious obstacles later.
For academic researchers, even publication timing matters. Publishing before protecting an invention can jeopardize patent rights in many jurisdictions. Companies also need clear ownership of, or rights to, their intellectual property, supported by proper agreements and corporate records.
Incorporating in the United States shouldn’t be the default assumption either. Canadian companies can access programs such as the National Research Council of Canada’s Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC IRAP) and the Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) tax incentive program. Those advantages need to be weighed alongside future financing requirements.
And raising capital isn’t just about the first investment. Founders need to consider who can support future rounds, what expertise investors bring and whether that capital will help the company reach its next stage.
Building on Edmonton’s Research Strengths
Edmonton has an exceptional foundation of scientific research and technical talent, particularly through the University of Alberta. But great research doesn’t automatically become companies that grow here.
That requires customers willing to try new technology, investors who understand research-based businesses and experienced advisors who can help founders navigate unfamiliar decisions.
Researchers don’t need to have everything figured out before reaching out. The University of Alberta, Edmonton Unlimited and other organizations across the city’s innovation ecosystem can help them explore their options, make connections and determine what comes next.
That support is growing. Announced during Edmonton Startup Week, Edmonton Unlimited’s Deep Tech Foundry is being developed to support companies emerging from university research.
Starting those conversations early gives researchers more opportunity to shape how their technology becomes a business.
Not every research breakthrough needs to become a startup. But for those with the potential, building a company should begin well before the research leaves the lab.
The opportunity isn’t simply to produce more great research in Edmonton. It’s to see more of that research become companies that create lasting value here.