University of California creates venture fund

University of California proposes creation of new venture fund to invest in UC innovation | University of California

“UC Ventures is the result of careful evaluation of best practices to develop the most effective investment vehicle to capture the economic value the University of California is creating through its pioneering research,” said UC Chief Investment Officer Jagdeep Singh Bachher. “Our goal is to build upon the technology commercialization efforts at UC while carefully managing potential risk exposures. We are confident an independent UC Ventures will achieve this.”

“In addition to any financial benefits, we see this fund as a potential vehicle for providing resources to support the basic research and talent — among both faculty and students — required to develop innovations that can benefit California and the world,” said UC President Janet Napolitano.

Recent examples of successful UC startups include
Aragon (acquired by Johnson & Johnson in August 2013);
Kite Pharma (IPO in June 2014); and
Seragon (acquired by Genentech in July 2014).

UC Ventures will be a stand-alone, independent investment vehicle structured to operate with a long-term, investment horizon. UC’s Office of the Chief Investment Officer will hold certain key governance rights and help UC Ventures develop its own resident expertise to mitigate risks. The UC Ventures team will have day-to-day investment management responsibilities.

University of California Plans Fund for Campus Startups - WSJ

Academic research is becoming increasingly entrepreneurial. The number of university-launched startup companies topped 800 nationally in 2013, up from just under 600 in 2008, according to a survey by the Association of University Technology Managers, a group that tracks the licensing of research discoveries and innovations.

Most major research universities, including Stanford University, New York University and the University of Texas, have created incubators and accelerators to explore commercial uses of research conducted on campus. Several institutions have launched independent funds to invest in their innovations developed on their campuses—though most are smaller than the pool proposed by UC.

Regents approve venture fund, other projects at meeting | The Daily Californian

University of California creates $250 million venture fund | UTSanDiego.com

The system’s Board of Regents approved the $250 million fund Wednesday, and the program is set to start operating next year.

Managers of the UC Ventures fund will scrutinize discoveries emerging from the system’s 10 campuses, assisted by an advisory board of outside experts. The fund will provide capital to commercialize the most promising findings.

These are startups that were formed with the purpose of commercializing a UC San Diego technology.

157 startups formed, including 15 in FY 2013.

82 are currently active and located in California

23 have had successful exits via merger or acquisition

UC San Diego startups have raised over $1.9 billion in venture funding

UC San Diego startups have raised over $63 million in Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) funding

Total employees of active companies: 2,416 (estimated by Dun and Bradstreet)

Total revenues of active companies: over $425,000,000 (estimated by Dun and Bradstreet)

Including companies that produce research tools (gene sequencing, assay kits), two-thirds of UC San Diego startups are in the medical field.

Companies with at least one product on the market: 40

Source: UC system