Orange is not limited to acceleration – Ecomotive
If you are the owner of an idea or a business in the field of biological sciences and technologies, and of course, health, or you are studying in one of these fields, we recommend that you watch our two-part interview with “Orange Accelerator” from Don’t give up; An accelerator that, based on international standards and with the participation of its European partners, has crossed the two lines of science and business and focused its activities on the commercialization of scientific research.
How do you evaluate the mentorship situation in Portugal?
We do not promote incoming startups that generally do not have the same TRL or MRL or are operating in different sub-sectors of the health field with a group mentorship; Rather, we believe that mentorship will be effective when it is implemented for each team in a dedicated and customized manner.
For this reason, our mentorships are mostly in this way that a commercialization mentor is placed exclusively next to a team and a permanent coordination and cooperation is established between them. Technical mentors provide support-guidance services to the teams on a case-by-case basis. In other words, a mentor, like a leader, is with a team throughout the innovation journey; It’s not like several mentors, whenever they had free time and empty schedules, served the teams in the Orange Accelerator; Coma is common in many accelerators.
Does this method cost a lot?
This method increases our mentorship costs; But it also greatly increases the efficiency and effectiveness, which is also in the direction of what we have reached in the formulation of the acceleration methodology in the field of commercialization of science and biological technology.
What problems have you encountered in the acceleration process?
Problems in the acceleration path are very different; From the problems that arise between team members to the fact that some startups (especially in our field), their time to enter the market is very early. For example, when we are working on the 3D printing of bone tissue with a focus on the domestic market, while the more routine biosynthetic tissues are still not able to fit as they should and maybe in European countries.
Sometimes being late is not suitable for the market; For example, startups in the field of health that work in the field of wound care, due to the abundance and intensity of competition, do not have much possibility to operate and create attraction for potential investors; We have touched many times on this discussion of being appropriate to the times of the market, both at the level of being too pioneering and too late.
Not knowing the market and understanding its dimensions is one of the main problems of most startup teams. The knowledge and familiarity of the teams with the regulatory and intellectual property issues is also very weak and limited, and sometimes problems arise from these issues.
Sometimes there is no understanding of the fixed investment required for the industrialization of a product (CAPEX). A startup in the field of medical equipment, for example, produces each product at a selling price of 20,000 tomans per piece and requires machines with an initial fixed investment of 40 billion tomans, in terms of return on investment, for investors, not much not attractive
How did the corona pandemic affect your process?
It had both positive and negative effects on our process, and overall, despite its small negative effect, our attitude towards it was neutral.
On the one hand, the pandemic slowed down our access to shared workspaces, labs, and labs and severely postponed our teams’ clinical and laboratory tests, but on the other hand, it doubled the attention and attraction of investors to the health field; So that in 2019, which can be called the year of the Corona shock in Iran, we faced both the number of requests for investment in the health field and the number of formation of technological and innovative teams, which I am a part of. Due to the attractiveness of this field, I know because of Corona.
Corona, Sanctions, JCPOA and every big political and economic event has taught us to manage our issues and strategies at the micro level in such a way that the necessary adaptation to the macro conditions is created. This is an issue that I can boldly say that it does not exist in the European companies that we are cooperating with, and they quickly get shocked and confused with every major change, but anyway, Iranian businessmen and business owners in Iran, Due to the fact that they have been exposed to sudden, numerous and diverse changes as well as various events during the last few decades, they have learned well how to adapt and be flexible.
Of course, on the other hand, the discussion that business people in Iran have not learned as they should and perhaps have not learned is the constructive model, manner and attitude, as well as self-confidence in international partnerships; This is because they have been left out of the international cooperation space for many years.
Since accelerators are basically defined in the context of the open innovation paradigm, one of my concerns is open innovation at the international level, which we must move in this direction. Our ecosystem cannot only depend on government support and constantly make demands from the government and policy institutions, and it must be able to attract foreign direct investment and international venture funds. In fact, the form we have now, sometimes and in some areas, is more of a showcase of an innovation ecosystem that works in a closed and tidy aquarium, but a long way to reach the ocean and coexist with other international innovation clusters. , is ahead.
In 2018, you signed a memorandum of understanding with the Comprehensive Center for Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine of Tehran University of Medical Sciences. To what extent has the goal of developing the third generation university been achieved?
We have established many interactions with the country’s academic and research departments, such as the Polymer and Petrochemical Research Institute, the National Biotechnology Research Institute, and the Scientific-Industrial Research Organization of Iran, and to be fair, many positive and constructive events and developments have taken place over the past years. Especially with culture building and continuous activities of the scientific vice-chancellor as well as the Presidential Innovation and Prosperity Fund, but the development of the third generation university, i.e. Entrepreneurial University in Iran, has not been realized as it should and maybe; Because the attitude of our academic community is still far from the industrial sector, and basically the process of historical evolution and development of the three institutions of university, industry and government in shaping the third and fourth generations of academics in Iran has a different story and path from the leading countries.
Our university is research oriented and evaluates the performance of its faculty members and graduate students in a different way. A university student or professor who wants to be an entrepreneur, even as we are talking, seems to be following an extracurricular activity and separate from his course-educational path, and to some extent he is a law breaker who deviates from his education and research path. has neglected
On the other hand, the approach of some research and technology funds in the field of venture capital in the field of technological innovations, which, according to the law, have a shareholder from the academic sector of the country, can be a very good evidence for this issue, the lack of intellectual proximity of the sectors Different from venture capital, accelerating the commercialization of technology and universities, I see the root of this non-fulfillment in cultural and educational issues, not the required infrastructures and mechanisms.
This issue is clearly evident in the funds whose offices are located in the physical space of the university and whose managers are university faculty members.
In your opinion, what should be done to achieve this goal?
If we want to achieve the goals of the third academic generation, in my opinion, there should be more intellectual and cultural convergence between the industry and the university.
How do you see the status of accelerators related to biological sciences in Iran?
Various accelerators are operating in this field and we have started cooperation with some of them, which is very attractive for me personally.
In the field of biological sciences, we have so many different sub-sectors in the field of health that it is possible for accelerators to cooperate with each other, either at the level of influencing the policies of the innovation ecosystem in this particular field or sharing financial, human and infrastructure resources with each other. has it. Our accelerators in Iran should also move towards becoming vertical and focusing on niche areas.
What is your competitive advantage?
We have tried to create our own special advantages and the competitive advantage of Orange has been our focus on the development of commercialization models and mechanisms. Our efforts are always in the direction of being an accelerator that, regardless of the fact that it tries to commercialize the researches of biological sciences and technologies, does not stay away from research in the field of acceleration and commercialization of technology and is a pioneering accelerator. Be in the research and development department in models and programs for accelerating and developing technological and innovative businesses.
In fact, we modified the business model and the components and elements of the acceleration programs running in the Orange Accelerator several times and sometimes rebuilt it so that we could take the output from the research we do in this field and use it in We have to enter our business to have a new voice in this field and while looking at international and domestic accelerators, we tried to adapt to the cultural, social, political and legal context of the country more than before.
What is your vision for the future of Orange?
The vision of the Orange Accelerator, based on its policies, is the formation of a holding company that also carries out industrial activities, which returns to our post-acceleration field. In particular, the infrastructure that we have deployed and operated since the middle of 2019 for post-acceleration provides key and important services for the development of their business to startups that have left the acceleration cycle; The services that the investors who trust us have also opened a separate account on.
Of course, if we see Orange in the framework of the acceleration phase activities and want to have a perspective, in my opinion, it can become a very effective and efficient accelerator, implement and organize different and distinguished acceleration programs, and also, innovation. Create fundamentals in the space of designing and developing a business model of organizations supporting entrepreneurship, called accelerators.
An important point that I must point out is that one of the dangers lurking in the accelerators is that the accelerators will turn into a burned nut and actor in the innovation ecosystem of Iran. They don’t do anything for the ecosystem as they should and maybe; By understanding this concern and anticipating the space that may be created, I have tried to turn the Orange Accelerator into an effective player in the innovation ecosystem.
We are trying to make orange in the near future, in the field of science and innovation policy; Whether with the innovation fund or with the Scientific Vice President and even the Islamic Council and other related bodies such as the judiciary, an active and constructive participation in legislative debates and the implementation of laws and regulatory oversight, that too for the benefit of the ecosystem. have; An actor who does not see the framework of his activities as limited to acceleration services, and besides these superior and appropriate services he provides, he is trying to play a role in the ecosystem on a larger scale.
Do you have any advice for students of different biology majors who are interested in starting their own business?
My advice to students is to explore the innovation ecosystem as much as possible, to better understand the actors and dimensions and aspects of the ecosystem, as well as focus on soft skills. Our startup teams are very strong in terms of technology, but lack simple skills like how to present properly, think creatively, or how to collaborate with each other. Without compliments, sometimes they are unable to even write an administrative letter. The development of soft skills is a missing link that students should strive for, along with their focus on their fields of expertise.
Also, if starting a business is on their agenda, they should touch and understand the journey of innovation; The journey of innovation and entrepreneurship, behind the beautiful cover that is displayed in the ecosystem, brings a lot of difficulties, failures and psychological pains to the technology teams that step on this path.
It is very important to develop and strengthen morale and motivation and that people can have self-control and self-management. Many people enthusiastically step on this path, but in the middle of the way, they get tired and give up, and no one but themselves can push them and move them forward.
So, along with the attractive appearance of entrepreneurship, there are many mental injuries that must be considered; Like a professional soccer player who suffers from various injuries on the way to the World Cup, an entrepreneur also suffers from many mental injuries. Therefore, they should prepare themselves mentally so that they face these pains, do not reduce and try.
More than a profession or expertise, entrepreneurship requires crazy love and madness, otherwise an employee and a job with sufficient income may be the most appropriate option for many people.
