Commercialization Process
Commercialize

Do you have a technology that you need protection for? How about an idea that would benefit from some market research? Together with the Office of Intellectual Property Management, the Innovation Institute is here to guide and support you through Tulane’s end-to-end commercialization process. This principled, transparent, customer discovery-driven investment, protection, and go-to-market process allows us to translate ideas and discoveries into innovations. All along the way, we offer educational programming, funding, and access to experts that support the development of your ideas and technologies. 

Are you a Tulanian who is ready to disclose your invention? Click here to start the process. Note: The hyperlink will go to a third-party site at Wellspring Sophia. You will be prompted to log-in with your Tulane email credentials. Disclosers will see an "Inventor" home page and a patentable disclosure form link on the right.

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OUR PROCESS FOR PROTECTING IDEAS AND DETERMINING IF THERE IS A MARKET

 

Our staff comb through Tulane publications, pre-award grant submissions and attend lab meetings, seminars, and poster sessions to identify early-stage innovations. 

Innovation Institute and Office of Intellectual Property Management staff walk inventors through the new online disclosure process, the formal kickoff for technology assessment and protection.

Your technologies and ideas are evaluated, with the end result being an initial plan for how to best move them forward.

We file a provisional patent on promising technologies, starting a year-long process of deeper technology evaluation and planning. This initial protection allows you to publish and present your findings while still having protected IP. 

Customer Discovery and additional market research are conducted to allow for informed decision-making around investment in the technology. This information is shared with inventors to allow them to make the best decisions possible for the technology. 

Provisional patents are converted to non-provisional patents after one year. 

Technologies need partners to develop, and this is where we identify them. This is also when inventors must begin to make concrete decisions about whether or not to form a startup company as a university spinout. 

Venture Formation

University spinouts are an important and exciting home for many ideas and technologies generated by faculty and students. We have a number of mechanisms and programs designed to help you through this process.

This is where patent protection is extended to foreign countries (usually 1 year to 18 months after non-provisional patents are filed). By this stage, we have helped you identify your startup formation and development strategy in advance of the technology leaving the university. 

Licenses and options are executed and the technology has officially left the university!

Partner ID

Some technologies and ideas are best developed by existing companies as partners. Identifying and securing a partner for technologies is a great way to ensure that your research can have an impact. We work with you to identify the types of companies best suited to bring your ideas or technologies to market. 

 

 

By this point, a partner has been identified and initial negotiations have taken place. Country-level patent filings are executed with the Office of Intellectual Property Management.

Final terms of deals are finalized and contracts executed. Exits can take the form of licenses, options, or even corporate sponsored research.

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Commercialization Programs and Resources.


•  A joint program between the Innovation Institute and the Deming Department of Medicine, Open MIC (Medical Innovation Challenge) Night is an opportunity for participants to pitch their medical innovations to a diverse audience including peers, Tulane faculty, industry experts, and the New Orleans entrepreneurship community. Participants pitch their ideas in three minutes to expert judges. 

Winners will receive an initial $750, 1:1 business idea mentorship for refining, and access to the I-CORPS Spark and Fusion programs. These programs help innovators and idea-makers explore the potential value of their research or innovation. Spark participation is mandatory for all winners, and after completion, they will be given $2,000 for further idea development. Participation in the Fusion program is optional, but winners who choose to participate will be given an additional $3,000 upon completion of their innovation development. If winners complete the total award and training pipeline, they can be awarded up to $5,750!
 

• The Provost’s Proof of Concept Fund is one of TUII’s signature commercialization programs. The first TUII program to officially launch, the Provost's Proof of Concept Fund will be administered in two cycles per year with three grants of up to $50,000 each awarded per cycle.

 

• The Tulane Research, Innovation, and Creativity Summit (TRICS) is Tulane’s signature annual research showcase. An evolution of Health Sciences Research Days, this university-wide event in 2023 consisted of over 400 research projects on display across all schools and departments. This year for the first time, TUII will partner with the Office of Research to produce and host this event.

 

• National Science Foundation Innovation Corps, (NSF’s I-Corps) program is the gold standard for customer discovery and value proposition research. I-Corps focuses on customer discovery research in two major phases: regional programs and national programs. Regional programs will allow for teams formed through programs like Provost's Proof of Concept Fund and Open MIC Night to take the next steps towards product development and commercialization and be competitive for the national program, which comes with a grant of $50,000 per team for customer discovery and limited stipend support.  For more information, contact Director of Commercialization Clay Christian at cchrist6@tulane.edu.

 

External Partner Funding Opportunities (Federal Technology Development Grants):

Are you looking for SBIR/STTR funding? The mission of the SBIR/STTR programs is to support scientific excellence and technological innovation through the investment of Federal research funds in critical American priorities to build a strong national economy.
Click here to see the SBIR/STTR funding opportunities. 

For a list of upcoming grant deadlines, click here.


Innovation Fellowship Program: The TUII Fellowship Program is a first-in-class up to 3-year postdoc program designed to facilitate technology commercialization and educate fellows about innovation ecosystem development and pipeline management while being mentored and guided by industry experts, innovative Tulane faculty, and TUII staff. Fellows conduct innovation ecosystem and pipeline research in preparation for developing a business plan for a technology (their own or an appropriate piece of Tulane IP).  For more information, contact Director of Commercialization Clay Christian at cchrist6@tulane.edu.

 

Disclose Your Idea:  Click here to learn more about Tulane's invention disclosure process to protect your intellectual property.