A New Role for NZ Universities: Lab-to-Launch Commercial Partners

The primary responsibilities of universities in New Zealand have always been research and education. That’s still the core job. But the nature of innovation has smiply changed. Now that the pace of applied technology is increasing - our institutions need to take on a third role.

Act as a launch platform for real-world commercial deployment.

Universities are already protecting intellectual property through internal policies, and many have commercialisation offices doing good work in this space. But there’s still a growing need to build stronger, more consistent pathways between protected research and commercial application.

Particularly relevant in fields like computer science, imaging systems, applied engineering, and environmental sensing; where much of the most promising technology is being developed inside postgraduate programmes or university-affiliated research units.

The Current Structure, and What’s Missing

In most cases, once a student completes their project, or a research team publishes a novel method, the pathway to deployment is unclear. The IP might be protected, but it's often parked, and without clear ownership models or commercial partners in place, it rarely moves forward.

The typical barriers are predictable:

• Students and researchers don’t have the time, funding, or legal knowledge to take a project to market themselves.

• Commercial partners are hesitant to engage unless the tech is close to market-ready, with clarity around ownership and support.

• Universities are cautious about taking on commercial risk or becoming directly involved in governance of a spin-out.

  
  

None of this is surprising, and none of it is unsolvable.

A Practical Next Step for New Zealand

Rather than building a new structure from scratch, we can extend what already exists. Universities already manage IP. Many already have research commercialisation teams.

Here’s what that could involve:

1. Embedded Commercial Planning at Project Level

Final-year research projects, capstone assignments, and postgrad research often produce high-potential tools and systems. Rather than reviewing commercial potential after submission, the process could begin during the project.

• IP discussions happen early, before publication.

• Each project includes a basic commercial assessment alongside the academic output.

• Staff are trained to recognise and triage commercial opportunities during supervision.

  
  

2. Shared Ownership Frameworks

Offer joint equity or licensing arrangements between the university, the researcher, and any co-founders brought in to help launch the product.

Clear ownership and governance structures allow students and staff to maintain technical direction, while giving the university a stake and oversight in how IP is used. These agreements don’t need to be overly complex, but they do need to exist before a product is shown to potential funders or customers.

3. Early Partner Access and Deployment Channels

Commercial partners in New Zealand are often keen to support early-stage tech, but don’t know where to find it. If universities created internal registries of protected, ready-to-deploy tools with clear contact points and terms for engagement, industry could step in earlier.

Offering exclusive evaluation access, limited trial periods, or early-stage licences could allow real feedback from the market, without fully giving away control of the technology.

Why This Is Worth Doing

The benefit of this structure isn’t theoretical. It’s about giving good work a fair chance to leave the lab and do something useful.

If a small number of student or staff-led technologies make it through this process and reach the market, then both the researcher and the university benefit. This model also reduces the chance of promising work being lost, duplicated, or exported without local return. And importantly, it gives commercial partners in New Zealand a reason to keep engaging with our research institutions.

What This Requires

To make this happen, universities don’t need to become venture capital firms or product manufacturers. But they do need to:

• Build lightweight internal processes for identifying and tracking deployable IP.

• Support students and researchers with early legal and structural advice.

• Offer flexible ownership models that protect IP but still allow real-world use.

• Make it easy for partners to evaluate and support early-stage tools or platforms.

  
  

Some of this work is already being done. The opportunity now is to bring it into the centre, so it becomes a standard pathway, not an exception.

The talent is here. The research is here. The IP protection is largely in place. What’s missing is the operational bridge between the academic finish line and the commercial starting line.

Written by Josh McKenty, Managing Director @ Avant :)