Industry-academia interface: building a spin-out

Daniel Perez Lopez is Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer at iPronics, a company dedicated to the development and commercialization of integrated programmable photonic circuits. His company focuses both on hardware advances for novel circuit and component architectures as well as software advances leading to the creation of fault-tolerant automated routines enabling advanced optical networking and processing, specially for AI infrastructure and intra-datacenter communications. As a young entrepreneur, Daniel shares with us his experiences and insights of the academia-industry transition and building a spin-out company from his university research.

Driven by my thesis results and the mutual conviction with my thesis supervisor, we founded iPronics in December 2019.I had to balance academic commitments with company endeavors, including a 1-year contract with a Canadian photonic company-Xanadu Quantum Technologies.After that, I transitioned to full-time CTO in 2021, channeling my expertise to drive iPronics' innovation and growth.
2. Your product is based on the research which you did during your PhD.Tell us a little bit about it.How did you decide that this was a strong commercializable concept?As an individual with an eye on entrepreneurship, were there challenges you faced when dealing with intellectual property coming out of your research?Commercialization revolves around addressing a problem with a viable solution.In our case, we pinpointed two distinct issues that shared a common remedy.First, after dedicating five years to integrated optics, we encountered three primary barriers hindering the development of a photonic chip/system: high costs (ranging from 100k€ to 1000k€), extensive timelines (spanning from 12 to 24 months), and knowledge gaps (involving risks, CAD tools, PDKs (define?), foundry variations, etc.).Second, the escalating demand for flexibility and reconfigurability in optical processing and networking applications in AI infrastructure and intradatacenter communications became apparent.The resolution for both challenges lay in designing a software-defined optical chip that could be programmed post-fabrication, akin to the solutions pioneered by the electronics industry in the 1970s.The moment we achieved functional simulations and conducted initial experiments, the thrilling prospects of a promising commercial venture became glaringly evident.Regarding intellectual property, when our company emerged from an academic research group, the university provided robust backing throughout the IP negotiation process.Nonetheless, it is worth noting that IP protection tends to be undervalued by Ph.D. students and some supervisors.A significant segment of the academic sphere still gauges success primarily through metrics like the h-index, thereby not always evaluating the patent versus journal dissemination decision with a composed mindset.
3. What were the key steps you took to move your ideas out of the lab and form the basis for a spin-out company?Highlight any challenges you faced during that transition.In my academic journey, I laid useful groundwork for building programmable photonic systems, spanning from fundamental components and circuits to the intricate software layer.However, it became evident that harnessing the power of a product-oriented team was essential to amplify not just the quality and performance but also the speed of development.
I navigated through three pivotal stages to achieve this: 1 Navigating a unique product's market potential is indeed a challenge.For us, growth lies in a twofold approach: educating the market about our innovation and adapting based on their response.We prioritize a mix of direct market engagement, gathering insights from early adopters, and employing data analytics to understand user behavior.Leveraging industry connections, partnerships, and targeted events aids in meeting the right stakeholders.Best practice involves a blend of quantitative and qualitative data collection, employing meetings, user testing, and interviews.Continuous refinement and agile adaptation based on user feedback remain pivotal in our growth strategy, but you always need to prioritize the points to evolve and avoid distractions.As we pioneer the niche of software-defined photonic circuits, our future hinges on the symbiotic evolution of our product with the market's needs, all while maintaining a keen eye on technological advancements.

What do you think of the evolving global market of spin-out companies?
The global market for spin-out companies is expanding, fueled by a surge in technological advancements, entrepreneurial spirit, and support from universities, governments and investors, particularly in AI-related domains.In the particular area of integrated optics, spin-outs often possess niche expertise but face challenges in establishing a good product-market fit and the associated traction due to their pioneering nature.Distinguishing features include their innovative core, stemming from research or breakthrough technologies, yet they have a daily battle with scalability and commercialization hurdles.
A key challenge is sourcing a skilled workforce proficient in both deep tech and business domains.There's a demand for talent adept at translating complex innovations into viable products.Bridging this skill gap remains critical for sustained growth.Finally, maintaining a balance between datadriven product-market fit insights and your instinct and deep vision is crucial, especially in new deep-tech product development.There's no manual or single expert who holds all the answers, so continuous monitoring and evaluation are vital to positioning your product in the market effectively.
As an additional point to the first one, periodically listening to your team is invaluable.Attending to their insights can broaden your perspective, boosting the team's motivation and enhancing overall performance.
1. Tell us about your career path to date.My professional trajectory began after obtaining a bachelor's degree in Telecommunications, propelling me into research.I initially focused on integrating radio-frequency and optical signals via on-chip integrated optics.My pursuits evolved through an M.Sc. in Tech, systems, and networks, culminating in a Ph.D. role at the Photonics Research Labs, Polytechnic University of Valencia.My research transitioned towards generalpurpose integrated programmable photonics.Delving into foundational components, circuits, and algorithms, I orchestrated work on a silicon photonic platform development.It was further supported by 4 months spent at the Optoelectronics Research Centre in the UK, where I could focus on the design and fabrication of the first silicon-based prototype.During my postdoctoral tenure, I got into teaching and mentored a group of 10 students who worked on programmable photonics projects.
This interview was conducted by Anastasiia Vasylchenkova, Associate Editor, Communications Engineering, and Rosamund Daw, Chief Editor, Communications Engineering Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made.The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material.If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder.To view a copy of this licence, visit http:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.© Springer Nature Limited 2024