Cadê Você?

O INESC TEC lança todos os meses no mercado pessoas altamente qualificadas. Muitas vezes, essas pessoas vão ocupar lugares de destaque nas melhores empresas nacionais e internacionais ou optam por formar spin-offs. Como a melhor forma de transferir tecnologia é transferir pessoas, nesta secção a voz é dada aos colaboradores que se formaram no INESC TEC e agora brilham noutras empresas e instituições.

Bruno Santos, Venture Catalysts, Managing partner

• Ano em que entrou e saiu do INESC Porto: 2011-2012
• Unidade(s) do INESC Porto com que colaborou: UITT

Testemunho relativo a sua experiência desde a sua saída do INESC TEC

After I left INESC TEC in mid 2012 I started working at Venture Catalysts (www.venture-catalysts.com). Venture Catalysts is a company focused on commercialising technology through entrepreneurship. By supporting visionary researchers and entrepreneurs releasing the full potential of their technologies, the company acts as a catalyst for the development of new technology–based ventures.
I worked at INESC TEC as a consultant implementing Innovation, Research and Development Management Systems and supporting Start-ups, and at Venture Catalysts I took on the risks and followed my own advice. I went from being an Advisor to playing the role of a Maker.
Venture Catalysts' structured and iterative approach as well as our expertise in several knowledge areas allow us to work side by side with the promoters of the technology, as a co-promoter, sharing risks and goals whilst speaking the languages of R&D, Entrepreneurship and Business.
Together with the researcher we focus on solving real market needs by evaluating the true potential of the technology to develop products/ services that support new ventures with high potential at a global scale. The first company created by Venture Catalysts was Abyssal (www.Abyssal.eu), a company that does operating systems for Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) in the Oil & Gas Industry. Venture Catalysts, together with the researcher/entrepreneur, structured the business and raised funds from Venture Capital to start the company and bring this innovative product to the market.
We are currently working with another researcher to structure a new company in the Health sector, and evaluating other promising technologies and teams for other ventures.

Na sua opinião como é que a sua experiência no INESC TEC ajudou no novo papel?

I would like to mention all the friends and colleagues with whom I learned a lot in the open and honest conversations we had. When I started working at INESC TEC I had just created Venture Catalysts together with four friends. My time at INESC TEC allowed me to better understand the work of a reference Institute that works as an Interface between University and Companies. This complemented our experience as Researchers, Start-Up Managers, Portuguese and Multinational company staff, Venture Capitalists and Banking that allowed us to perfectly understand the Start-Up ecosystem and focus on an unmet market need. We are a company that focuses on complex technology based projects on a global scale. Not being consultants but promoters together with the researcher/entrepreneur leads to a complete alignment and risk sharing. This allows the company to get people with experience and knowledge in business and entrepreneurship with a technical background, to overcome the obstacles in creating a complex business, always from a true perspective of value co-creation that increases the probability for a Start-up to be successful.

Na sua opinião, o INESC TEC mudou em quais aspectos desde a sua saída?

In my opinion INESC TEC didn’t change in its most important aspect as it continues to be an Interface Institute of reference in Portugal. I also feel it is changing for the better in two fields: Internationalisation, confirming that is an important Institute not only in Portugal, and Networking, boosting its fabulous network of brilliant collaborators and former collaborators.