eth transfer
Linking Science and Business
Ingvi Oskarsson and Alexander Schläpfer
The performance of Spin-off companies
at the Swiss Federal Institute of
Technology Zurich
3
Dear Reader,
Innovation is one of the key factors in the success of the
Swiss economy. This is why transfer of research results, know-
how and technology from academia to industry is important,
and has only become more so over the years. ETH Zurich
works constantly in pursuit of its mandate to conduct
research that benefits society. Creating spin-off companies is
one of the most successful ways to transform scientific dis-
coveries into products that meet the market needs of today
and the future.
By sharpening its focus on spin-off creation in the past de-
cade, ETH Zurich has been able to establish an environment
that fosters spin-off generation. Resources are and have
been invested to raise the entrepreneurial awareness of
students, and to stimulate and support the transfer of ETH
Zurich technologies into market-competitive spin-offs. After
such an intensive period of investment and growth, now
seems a good time to reflect on the results of the past ten
years.
We are very fortunate that the two authors, Alexander
Schläpfer and Ingvi Oskarsson, bringing with them the pro-
fessional edge of the Masters in Finance program from the
London Business School, elected ETH Zurich to be their case
study on the success and economic impact of spin-offs. ETH
Zurich has nurtured the founding of 130 spin-offs in the last
10 years. The spin-offs have had a direct impact on the local
economy, creating more than 900 direct jobs and a total pre-
tax income of CHF 43 Mio in 2007. This resulted in about CHF
18 Mio of annual tax income. The total investment in these
companies is close to CHF 170 Mio, with an estimated pooled
internal rate of return (IRR) of more than 43 percent. These
results are very encouraging. They strengthen our conviction
to continue with our efforts in support of spin-off creation,
and bolster our commitment to