News and Events >From the Classroom to Market: Interning at Technology Transfer

From the Classroom to Market:
Interning at Technology Transfer

By: Matt Caton, MBA Candidate 2006

August 5, 2005

At the CU Boulder Leeds School of Business, graduate students are encouraged to find and obtain an ideal summer internship. Ideally, the internship should complement your skill set, enhance your education, and provide a stepping-stone towards your career path. With an academic focus on entrepreneurship, interning at the CU Technology Transfer Office (TTO) provided an extension from the classroom to the intricacies of not only transferring university technology but also starting a business.

Licensing associates at TTO screen numerous invention disclosures each week and can only commit a limited amount of time to even the best ideas. Conversely, student interns focus on three main projects each summer conducting feasibility studies, marketing technology, and attempting to bridge the gap between a technological solution and a commercial opportunity. With a background in information technology, my focus this summer was on software related technology. This experience unveiled the complexity and hurdles entrepreneurs face when attempting to penetrate the market.

Specifically, I split time between non-exclusively licensing a speech recognition toolkit developed at the CU Boulder Center for Spoken Language Research (CSLR) and working to acquire early seed funding for a wireless sensor fusion technology from the CU Boulder Electrical Engineering department. Each opportunity demanded that I become well versed in a somewhat unfamiliar landscape and taught valuable lessons that could not have been duplicated in the classroom. TTO's stable environment and experienced staff effectively surmount the array of stumbling blocks encountered in commercializing early-stage technology.

In assisting to license CSLR technology, I had the opportunity to work closely with two very talented inventors, Drs. Bryan Pellom and Kadri Hacioglu. Their technology, SONIC, a complete toolkit for the on-going development of speech recognition algorithms, obtained a wealth of attention from academic and commercial developers. Initially, I focused on standardizing non-exclusive licensing terms for application developers and toolkit distributors. Currently, in order to facilitate this standardization and to market the toolkit's functionality, we are in the process of upgrading SONIC's website.

For the EE project, I conducted a complete feasibility study for a sensor fusion technology attempting to reposition it in order to acquire early stage research funding. The business concept, named Sentina Systems by the inventor Dr. Vishwesh Kulkarni, was designed to provide automotive safety within an accurate and reliable estimate of a driver's surroundings by fusing GPS, radar, and video. To pinpoint an immediate need for the technology and acquire funding, my focus was on finding another application to implement this suite of algorithms. Taking a step back to fully understand the technology's capabilities equipped me with the knowledge to talk to industry experts within wireless sensor fusion. Further, I had the opportunity to work closely with a local serial entrepreneur who became excited about the technology and its market potential. This entrepreneur, who has managed a handful of semi-conductor companies, provided in-depth insights for promoting the technology and positioning it to acquire early stage funding.

With developed relationships throughout the entrepreneurial community, the TTO provides interns with local guidance from experienced professionals. Through an affiliation with the Boulder Innovation Center interns are paired with an advisory committee allowing them to present their assumptions and acquire direction. This advisory committee continues to provide invaluable insight into the projects I have been working on.