Technology transfer: a key to explaining Switzerland’s innovative prowess

The study entitled ‘Monitoring knowledge and technology transfer in Switzerland’ (pdf in german) analyses various indicators and transfer mechanisms in order to assess the current state of knowledge and technology transfer (KTT) between universities¹ and the private sector in Switzerland and to identify areas for innovation policy action. In addition to providing national analysis, the report also offers an international comparison of some indicators.

The indicators analysed cover major aspects of KTT and show how well universities and the private sector work together to create new products and services. Overall, the study rates Swiss knowledge and technology transfer very highly. The universities are attractive to the private sector. Expenditure on universities’ research and development (R&D) financed by the private sector doubled during the period covered by the study.

Furthermore, the significance of academic patents has increased over time and emphasises the growing ‘practical’ importance of the knowledge generated at universities. The key findings of the study are summarised below, and areas of action for improving knowledge and technology transfer are identified.

Key findings of the study

1. R&D funding:
   Expenditure on research and development in the higher education sector funded by the private sector almost doubled in Switzerland during the period under review, reaching high proportions by international standards. This emphasises the strong links between science and business in Switzerland. Despite this increase in funding, the share of private-sector funding for R&D at universities has remained relatively constant over time at around 10 per cent, i.e. third-party funding from industry has risen in line with the overall university budget.
2. Patenting:
   Patents based on inventions by scientists (academic patents) play a crucial role for SMEs. The importance of academic patents has increased in Switzerland over time and emphasises the growing ‘practical’ significance of the knowledge generated at universities. However, the share of academic patents as a percentage of all patent applications is low compared with other countries. This contrasts with the high proportion of co-patents (patent applications filed jointly by firms and scientific institutions). This suggests a more selective patenting of academic knowledge on the one hand, but also a relatively high market relevance of patented academic knowledge on the other. Patents held jointly by universities and firms generally have a relatively high market value.
3. International collaborations and co-publications:
   Switzerland has a high number of co-publications (i.e. scientific articles written by authors from universities and the private sector), which have increased significantly over time. This emphasises just how relevant research at universities is to the private sector and highlights the growing importance of this transfer channel. International research collaborations, particularly as part of EU programmes, are crucial. Swiss scientific institutions cooperated with foreign firms only in over 70 per cent of EU research projects. This stresses the huge importance of international knowledge flows in generating cutting-edge technologies.
4. Licensing, spin-offs and start-ups:
   The increase in licensing agreements from universities that generated revenue in the respective year is a positive sign for the commercialisation of technology. The number of spin-offs based on intellectual property (IP) from Swiss universities also followed a positive trend until 2019 but has declined since then. At the same time, the number of firms set up without any formal licensing (start-ups) is rising.
5. Subsidies and innovation projects:
   While the amount of funding has remained almost unchanged over the entire period under review, the number of innovation projects involving implementation partners funded by Innosuisse has decreased significantly since 2021. This suggests that Innosuisse is increasingly funding larger and more extensive projects. The high proportion of funding provided for projects involving start-ups (almost a third of total expenditure) shows that Innosuisse is also focusing on high-risk projects.

Challenges and areas of action

1. Keep the variety of transfer routes open:
   Knowledge is shared through many different channels. These include joint research, R&D agreements, expert opinions, licensing of IP rights, business start-ups, consortia involving firms and universities, continuing professional development, and personal contacts. Any transfer policy should therefore not only focus on encouraging a few kinds of transfer, such as R&D collaborations, but also meet the requirements and needs of different types of firms and transfer mechanisms.
2. Ensure continuity of transfers:
   Economic shocks, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, can have a negative impact on individuals’ willingness to cooperate and share knowledge. Counter-cyclical (anti-cyclical) support in the form of government action can help to ensure the continuity of such transfers and strengthen firms’ competitiveness.
3. IP regulation for spin-offs:
   Effective IP regulation is crucial for rapidly transferring university knowledge to industry. Lengthy negotiations and complex IP protection agreements not only delay the transfer of knowledge but also make it more difficult to find investors. Measures to encourage systematic debate on IP regulation are therefore needed. Such measures could support the development of best practice, guidelines and model agreements for intellectual property. This would reduce the complexity of negotiations and make the entire process more efficient.
4. Improvement of IP data:
   There is a need for reliable data on the importance and management of IP at universities of applied sciences. A data basis should be created here to provide a solid foundation for future studies on the importance and, where necessary, improvement of IP management.

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¹The term ‘universities’, as used in this report, includes not only the cantonal universities and ETHZ/EPFL but also the research institutions of the ETH Domain (EMPA, EAWAG, PSI and WSL).