As deep-tech demand burgeons, can scientists make lab-to-market pivot?

The government and academic institutions are setting up accelerators to turn science into startups. Is it right to ask academicians to start a business?

- Shweta Taneja

For decades, there was this image of scientists - geniuses living in their laboratory, working with beakers and lab rats, lost in their own world. For centuries, science was based on patronage - of governments and businesses, But this image is quickly changing thanks to emerging technologies such as AI, robotics, quantum computing, space and biotechnology.

The global deep tech market is projected to be worth $714.6 billion by 2031. That's a huge business opportunity and it requires scientists from physics, engineering, biology and computer science to develop businesses and products.

“Faculty and their students are in the best position to do deep tech startups as they know the field very well,” agrees Dr Arindam Ghosh, professor in department of Physics at Indian Institute of Science (IISc) who was the conference chair at the recently concluded Quantum India conference in Bengaluru and has founded multiple startups. Faculty and their students have a bigger picture of the field, a potential solution and even the technical know-how to develop a product.

“My PhD helped me find new ideas and techniques to build my products,” says Manoj Gopalkrishnan, an associate professor at IIT Bombay and founder of Algorithmic Biologics, a startup building a molecular computing solution. Gopalkrishnan worked in molecular computing for many years before and developed a method that increased efficiency in detection. This is what he's building right now-a way to improve the cost, scale and accuracy of molecular testing in genetics so we can do better, faster diagnostics and discover new drugs. Alongside, he’s also involved in his academic duties.