The University of Minnesota launched 25 startup companies in fiscal 2024, surpassing its previous record for the fourth year in a row. The announcement coincides with the launch of a new initiative to scale up the University’s commercialization work called Discover, Advance, Impact.
Since the 2006 founding of the Venture Center, which is a division of University of Minnesota Technology Commercialization, the University has launched more than 260 startup companies, with a long term success rate of 68%. Additionally, 73% of these companies have located in Minnesota. In fiscal 2024, a record 88% of new University startups — 22 out of 25 — located in-state. The 25 startups also meet the University’s goal to spin out “25 by 2025” under MPact 2025, the University’s systemwide strategic plan.
“Over the last five years, only a handful of universities nationally have been creating 20 or more startups per year,” said Rick Huebsch, associate vice president for research and innovation. “Today, our Venture Center has 45-50 potential startup companies in our startup pipeline, which is striking when we consider the 15-20 we had only a few years ago — it indicates a strong bench of untapped potential. With the vast majority of startup capital based in and flowing to places like Silicon Valley and Boston, we simply don’t have the startup capital available to our companies that can bring these amazing ideas to market, so we want to help our companies and help our broader startup ecosystem in Minnesota.”
Within overall measures of technology transfer, the University has been named “No. 1 in the Heartland” and ranks among the top 15 U.S. public universities for key technology commercialization metrics, including deals, disclosures and startups in the most recent trade associations survey. The University also typically ranks in the top 20 U.S. universities for U.S. utility patents issued.
“As one of the nation’s leading public research universities, we have a unique responsibility to ensure our innovations and discoveries are translated in ways that positively benefit people and the communities in which they live,” said President Rebecca Cunningham. “Our researchers across the University of Minnesota System have cultivated an ecosystem for innovation, and as a result, we continue to create new products and solutions that transform, improve and enhance the world around us.”