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Oxford University Innovation breaks spinout record

14:13 17 November in News, Oxfordshire, Talent and Innovation by Mia Champion

Oxford University, through OUI, has created 31 new companies over the past fiscal year, setting a new record for company creation at the University. In addition, Oxford companies have raised over £1.1bn during this period, a 29% increase from 2020’s previous record.

The figure puts Oxford University firmly into the number one spot for company creation in the UK, compared to peer universities. Globally, based on preliminary research based on most recently published figures for company creation from peer tech transfer organisations by OUI, Oxford is presently ranked number two, second only to Switzerland’s ETH Zurich with 34.

In addition, the IPO of Oxford Nanopore marked the most successful IPO exit for a UK spinout to date, and fifth largest globally for any spinout, according to data from Global University Venturing.

 “OUI’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic is testament to the resilience, passion and commitment of our staff.”

“Collectively, we have sought to inculcate a culture that embraces our company values of integrity, collaboration and empowerment, and in unprecedented times such as the last year, it has been heartening to see our colleagues displaying these values daily and overcoming adversity without losing momentum.”

Matt Perkins, Chief Executive Officer

 

“Since the pandemic began, we have witnessed a surge in demand for support from colleagues in Licensing and Ventures, who have helped academics developing Covid-19-related technologies such as world-leading vaccines, novel diagnostics and low-cost ventilators.

“Covid-19 specific activity has also figured prominently in our Consulting Services and Investments groups, while our business support groups – operations, marketing, finance and HR – have not only kept the OUI machinery running during lockdown, but have ensured the transition to remote working has been as painless as possible.”

Adam Stoten, Chief Operating Officer

 

Among the success stories were PepGen, which is using enhanced delivery cell-penetrating peptide technology to develop treatments for Duchenne Muscle Dystrophy and related conditions. The company attracted £45 million to accelerate their development. And Evox Therapeutics, a company working on using exosomes to develop a new class of therapeutics, attracted funding of £69.2 million, to further develop its DeliverEX platform and significantly boost its intellectual property portfolio and R&D capabilities.

To read more, click HERE.

The annual review can be read at https://annualreview2020.innovation.ox.ac.uk/financial-report/