Encouraging Entrepreneurship in Academic Institutions: The Vision of Oscar Kneppers

In an effort to bridge the gap between academia and entrepreneurship, Oscar Kneppers, Chief Executive Officer of the Amsterdam Center of Entrepreneurship (ACE), is leading a transformative initiative to harness the scientific potential of Amsterdam’s academic community. The objective is to translate groundbreaking research into viable companies, with the ultimate goal of offering society a fresh lease of life through the untapped potential within the city’s academic institutions.

As ACE prepares to launch its renewed mission in the upcoming academic year, Kneppers envisions a long-term plan to attract researchers to the world of entrepreneurship. His ambition is to eventually transform a portion of the city’s 11,000 researchers into entrepreneurs within the next decade, creating a family of a thousand academic companies every five years.

In a podcast interview with TNW’s Andrii Degeler, Kneppers outlined his plans to instill a culture of entrepreneurship within Amsterdam’s academic society. Drawing on his experience as a serial entrepreneur, tech investor, and internet publisher, he brings a wealth of knowledge to propel this ambitious agenda. He also emphasizes the significance of valorization in bringing academic innovations back to society, underlining the need to build teams composed of diverse knowledge within the academic community.

Despite the slow pace of the academic world, Kneppers perceives this as an opportunity to gather information, engage with stakeholders, and uncover the potential for entrepreneurship. Inspired by esteemed institutions such as MIT and Stanford, he aims to replicate and adapt their successful models to fit Amsterdam’s unique landscape. This includes establishing an incubator and a fund dedicated to investing in academic startups, thereby nurturing a cycle of innovation and growth.

Kneppers recognizes the gap between the abundance of research talent and the scarcity of startups emerging from the academic sector. He attributes this to a lack of culture, access, and awareness about the entrepreneurial path within academic institutions. By fostering an integrated environment, he believes it’s feasible to provide alternative career paths to researchers and transform Amsterdam’s extensive knowledge base into successful enterprises that address real-world problems.

Furthermore, Kneppers is acutely aware of the current debate surrounding deal terms and intellectual property associated with academic spinoffs. He emphasizes the importance of giving back to society and envisions a scenario in which successful companies contribute to a revolving fund to support the next generation of entrepreneurs. This vision of valorization as a means of giving back to the city holds significant promise for the future of academia and entrepreneurship in Amsterdam.