Ninth Level Ireland

“All colleges and universities are to be questioned over their links to spin-off companies involving members of staff amid concerns over financial issues surrounding some firms. The Dáil’s public accounts committee has agreed to take the step after discussions between it, Cork Institute of Technology, the University of Limerick and Waterford Institute of Technology …” (more)

[BreakingNews.ie, 30 May]

“Danalto, a Trinity College Dublin spin-out focused on internet of things (IoT) services and technologies, has raised €750,000 in seed funding. The company specialises in deploying flexible IoT solutions based on the low power wide area network (LPWAN) technology standard, which allows long range communications at a low bit rate among connected objects such as sensors …” (more)

[Charlie Taylor, Irish Times, 20 December]

“Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT) retained less than €1 million from the €65 million sale of a spin-out company developed on its campus, according to a special report by the Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG). The report also raises concerns over the WIT’s governing body’s lack of oversight of the sale, including issues such as changes to the institute’s equity stake and conflicts of interest involving senior staff members …” (more)

[Carl O’Brien, Irish Times, 13 November]

“More than 160 University College Cork employees earned average payouts of €3,400 for contributions to a campus tech firm that sold to a Facebook subsidiary. The value of the 2016 purchase of spinout company InfiniLED by virtual technology company Oculus has also emerged as being well over €20m. UCC records show it got an initial payment of €1.659m for its 12.6% share in InfiniLED, which developed low-energy LED lighting at the university’s Tyndall National Institute research centre …” (more)

[Niall Murray, Irish Examiner, 16 March]

“An independent review into the sale of intellectual property by third-level colleges has found weaknesses in the way conflicts of interest among research staff are managed in the sale of lucrative spinout companies. The review was prompted by concerns raised at the Dáil’s Public Accounts Committee last year over potential conflicts of interest in this sector, particularly where research staff are also shareholders in companies that end up being sold for large sums of money …” (more)

[Carl O’Brien, Irish Times, 9 February]

“The President of Waterford Institute of Techonology has insisted that procedures surrounding conflicts of interest were adhered to when it came to the sale of the IT spin out company FeedHenry …” (more)

[WLR FM, 6 April]

“The Higher Education Authority (HEA) has been urged to investigate whether there are conflicts of interest among senior staff across third-level colleges who are shareholders in spinout companies. It follows concerns raised by Sinn Féin deputy David Cullinane at the Dáil’s Public Accounts Committee on Wednesday surrounding the sale of a company co-located at Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT) …” (more)

[Carl O’Brien, Irish Times, 29 March]

“A review is being undertaken by Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT) into arrangements relating to spin-off research companies based there. The situation was outlined at the Dáil Public Accounts Committee, which heard that the Department of Education expects to hear shortly about the findings …” (more)

[Niall Murray, Irish Examiner, 24 March]

“A UCD spinout co-founded by two Dublin brothers is forecasting sales of €20m next year. MagGrow was founded by serviced apartment firm entrepreneurs Gary and David Wickham, who have developed a promising crop-spraying technology …” (more)

[John Reynolds, Independent, 18 December]

“Irish Pharmaceutical firm APC Ltd is set to nearly triple its workforce over the next two years after opening a new research facility in Dublin …” (more)

[BusinessETC, 15 February]

“The University of Limerick has outlined its ambitions to increase their number of spin-out companies by 25% over the next five years …” (more)

[Anne Sheridan, Limerick Leader, 12 January]

“Ireland’s campus incubation centres house our brightest and best, who are all working on the Next Big Thing in science, tech and engineering. Simon Rowe investigates what they do and profiles the top 10 spin-outs set to conquer the world …” (more)

[Simon Rowe, Independent, 15 November]

“University College Dublin spinout company Logentries has been bought by US based security data and analytics software firm Rapid7 in a deal worth almost €60 million …” (more)

[RTÉ News, 13 October]

“Irish founded semiconductor company Powervation has been acquired by Japanese electronics firm ROHM for approximately $70 million. The University of Limerick spin-out was purchased in an all-cash transaction …” (more)

[Pamela Newenham, Irish Times, 23 July]

“Google has swooped in to buy an Irish virtual reality startup company, whose technology is to be incorporated into headsets and other futuristic devices …” (more)

[Adrian Weckler, Independent, 2 May]

Abstract: This study explores how micro-institutional dynamics shape the entrepreneurial propensity of academics in the university context. The study was motivated by the need for greater understanding of the micro-foundations of the entrepreneurial university, and the potentially significant role of micro-level dynamics in the emergence and proliferation of entrepreneurial behaviour in academia … (more)

[NUI Galway Theses (Phd Theses), October 2014]

“One of Europe’s largest agricultural co-ops, the French-based InVivo, has acquired a 50% stake in a UCD spin-out company for an undisclosed sum …” (more)

[Geoff Percival, Irish Examiner, 15 November]

“Spin-out companies, which are formed in the academic world and transition to the business world, are a hot topic at the moment. But just how good at spinning out companies are our universities? And what makes all the difference when it comes to the success or failure? …” (more)

[Business ETC, 27 September]

“Tyndall National Institute and Waterford Institute of Technology’s Telecommunications Software & Systems Group (TSSG) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) that will seek to draw down €82m of funding available through the EU’s Horizon 2020 programme and create 10 spin outs …” (more)

[Grainne Rothery, Business and Leadership, 18 September]

“Table 1 below shows the locational characteristics of USOs for the 11 Irish HEIs (Appendix I breaks down into more details). If all institutions are taken into consideration, the average distance between a USO and its parent university in Ireland is 31.27 Km (about 19.43 Miles) …” (more)

[Research on Higher Education in Ireland, 3 May]