It is necessary to set up a majority public-owned capital investment fund to invest in business innovation projects based on disruptive, advanced and enabling technologies arising from the knowledge ecosystem of Catalonia, focussing particularly on biotechnology, IT, key enabling technologies and clean energy. The management of the fund would be carried out through an independent specialist management firm which would also offer support to the technology transfer offices of universities and research institutions with speeding up projects in order to make them investible through national and international venture capital funds. At present there is virtually no line of funding to cover this niche: technology maturity to bring it closer to the market, to make it more appealing to suit demand and, accordingly, to lend feasibility to the initial project financed using specific funds for research. This line, ring-fenced for universities and research institutions, would be earmarked to funding concept tests, prototyping and TRL (technology readiness level) uploads. The goal is to reduce the risk of the projects, to develop them to more advanced stages and to make them more appealing to suit demand. It will bring about increased funding for technology transfer offices – which are currently under resourced – with the general aim of recruiting and retaining specialist talent on the subject, as well as benefitting from the instruments needed to bring projects closer to the market.
Catalunya 2022
RESET: Call to reactivate Catalonia
ACTION 7.6