Page 24

Final-DTU_in_Profile_2013_web

ENT REPRENE URI AL S TUDENT S The competition featured 4,000 projects from all over Europe. Three of the four winning teams were from DTU. The first prize of USD 25,000 was awarded to the students behind the Biosynthia project, which presented a convincing plan for how their new method for the biological production of chemicals can be developed into a business. Third place was shared between the IRSee project, an ultra-efficient infrared camera, and the Black Silicon Solar team, which has developed a new usage for nano-surfaces on solar cells. The three winning Danish teams later progressed to the global competition at the University of California, Berkeley. Showing how to work together One member of the jury was Isaura Gaeta, who is responsible for Intel‘s relations with universities and education courses. “The Danish teams were very well prepared—and they have great ideas!“ Marcin Hejka, Managing Director of Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa at Intel Capital, adds: “Denmark has found the right formula for encouraging universities and the business community to work together. As a result, they have the capacity to commercialize their technologies. And commercialization is the name of the game.“ A good team According to both Isaura Gaeta and Marcin Hejka, one of the keys to success is putting together a good team featuring a range of different competencies. And this is an area in which Denmark excels. “In China, there is no tradition for people starting their own companies. People generally prefer to work for a big established firm. In Silicon Valley, where I live, things are very different. Here, young people get plenty of help and encouragement to start their own businesses. Mentor schemes are extremely important to young entrepreneurs,“concludes Isaura Gaeta. MARI A VISKIN DE PHO TO MARIA VISKINDE Resounding wins for DTU startups DTU walked away with the majority of the prizes at the Intel Business Challenge Europe 2012 competition in Poland—a business plan competition for university students. 24 Technical University of Denmark


Final-DTU_in_Profile_2013_web
To see the actual publication please follow the link above