In today’s world, people with STEM backgrounds are in high demand to translate their technical knowledge into successful business ventures. Entrepreneurs with STEM backgrounds have an advantage in spotting problems that require innovative solutions, products and services with practical applications and understanding user needs and industry trends.
In this article, we will look at the increasing number of STEM entrepreneurs who are starting their own companies, the benefits of having deep technical knowledge as a founder, how academic research is being translated into commercial technologies, the most promising emerging tech sectors for startups, and advice on transitioning from a STEM professional to a first-time entrepreneur.
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The Rise of the STEM Entrepreneur
Gone are the days when most entrepreneurs came from business, marketing or finance backgrounds. In recent years, many of the most exciting and impactful startups, like physic AI solver solutions, have tech founders straight out of engineering or computer science PhD programs. According to statistics, technology company founders with engineering backgrounds have become more common than those from business-related fields.
With cutting-edge tech knowledge and the ability to create innovative products and services directly out of academic research, this new breed of STEM entrepreneur has been behind most of the disruptive and fastest-growing tech companies today. Elon Musk was no business school graduate when he started SpaceX and Neuralink following his physics PhD program, nor was Palmer Luckey when he founded Oculus VR while studying virtual reality.
The Advantages of Deep Technical Knowledge
For STEM entrepreneurs looking to capitalize on a technical breakthrough or solve an industry problem, having deep technical expertise as a founder provides important advantages:
- Spotting Commercial Opportunities from Academic Research. Tech entrepreneurs can stay abreast of the forefront of university research in engineering, AI and computer science and identify with a commercial potential before anybody else.
- Building Minimal Viable Products In-House. This allows STEM founders to rapidly prototype and build an early stage product without the help of outsourced technical help, which helps them to continuously tweak and refine an MVP.
- Credibility When Speaking to Technical & Non-Technical Audiences. Whether pitching to VCs or explaining complex technologies to customers, tech founders with hands-on engineering experience inspire confidence in their vision.
- Understanding Technical Complexities. As deep experts in their technological fields, STEM entrepreneurs can set realistic timelines, quickly troubleshoot complex issues during product development, and make judicious technical tradeoff decisions.
- Attracting Top Technical Talent. Engineering-led startups with technical founder-CEOs have an edge when it comes to recruiting other top programmers, developers and data scientists.
In an era where software is eating the world and technology sits at the heart of most successful startups, deep technical knowledge is a major competitive advantage.
Translating Academic Research into Commercial Technology
There is plenty of promising research projects in the university engineering, computer science and physics labs that could be turned into real-world technologies. However, not all incentives in academia are conducive for developing commercial products. Tech entrepreneurs come in.
By keeping a close eye on niche research areas and cultivating industry connections, STEM entrepreneurs spot projects that show commercial promise. STEM entrepreneurs identify projects with commercial potential by closely monitoring niche research areas and fostering industry connections. For example, Palmer Luckey was a keen enthusiast of virtual reality technology during his studies. He saw potential in using smartphone screens and motion sensors to create affordable VR headsets aimed at gaming enthusiasts.
Budding tech entrepreneurs should also connect with university tech transfer offices besides monitoring academic research publications and attending technical conferences. Active in the commercialization of campus IP and lab research, these units are actively seeking commercial partners to license. Today, most of the major universities have incubator programs to develop startups based on the academic research in the areas such as biotechnology, clean energy, quantum computing and so on.
Most Promising Emerging Tech Sectors
For STEM graduates and professionals looking to make the leap into entrepreneurship, the following technology sectors show particular promise:
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
AI breakthroughs from academic labs are beginning to find practical business applications, from machine learning and computer vision. Opportunities include Scale AI (data labeling), Landing AI (manufacturing) and Mythic AI (hardware chips) for startups.
Autonomous Vehicles
Self-driving vehicle startups have raised billions in VC funding over the past 5 years. As the technology matures, new opportunities are opening up in mapping, simulation, sensors, safety systems and last-mile delivery.
Space Tech
Private space startups are driving down the cost of launch vehicles, satellites and space-based services. Startups to watch include space mining ventures like Deep Space Industries and Orbital Sidekick’s hyperspectral imaging platform.
Digital Health
Wearables, telemedicine, electronic records and data analytics are transforming healthcare. Startup opportunities exist in patient monitoring, virtual/augmented reality therapy, clinical decision support and coordination of care.
Fintech
From blockchain and crypto to payment processing and neobanks, finance is rapidly digitizing. Areas like insurtech, automated investing and decentralized finance are seeing particular activity.
While still early-stage, quantum computing, renewable energy, drones, 3D printing and biotechnology also hold much entrepreneurial promise in the coming years.
Transitioning from STEM Professional to First-Time Entrepreneur
For STEM graduates considering startups, the transition from academia or corporate roles can seem daunting. Building a company requires new skills in business strategy, product-market fit, hiring, legal, marketing and raising investment. Here is some advice for technical professionals embarking on their first startup:
- Leverage University Incubators & Accelerators. Most universities run programs to help students/alumni launch startups – take advantage of mentors, training, resources and small seed funds.
- Start by Identifying Real Problems to Solve. Build technology that addresses tangible needs of customers and the market. The best ideas often come from personal frustration with existing tools.
- Partner with Business Co-Founders. Having a partner to handle marketing, sales, operations and finance will allow tech founders to focus on the product and technical architecture in the early days.
- Develop Basic Business Acumen. While technical skills are key, certain ‘business sophistication’ exists and will take you a long way. Read books on business models, sales and venture capital; take courses on entrepreneurship and product development.
- Join Local Startup Communities. Advice, mentorship, potential hires and collaborations are all invaluable in connecting with other founders. Incubators, co-working spaces, Meetup groups and so on, make up cities.
Leveraging deep technical ability with business skills, advice from seasoned founders, and tapping into startup ecosystems can help unlock an entrepreneurial career for STEM professionals.
Conclusion
A new wave of STEM entrepreneurs is hitting the startup scene, everything from computer science labs working on AI, to university bioengineering projects turning to the market with medical devices, and future physics grads turning their hands to commercial space company startups. The addition of this new kind of founder, backed by both deep technical expertise and the ability to understand complex technologies, gives this time of transforming research into products full potential.
The opportunities to start companies have never been better, as there is so much venture capital chasing the most promising ideas in fields such as artificial intelligence, digital health, autonomous cars, space tech, fintech, among others. STEM graduates can use their evaluation of academic research for commercial potential, partner with business co-founders, participate in university entrepreneur programs, and plug into local startup communities to make a successful leap into high-impact technology entrepreneurship.
