Biocontrol Technologies attends the event of the University of Barcelona: Cockroaches vs Unicorns.
Thursday, October 20, Francesc Peremiquel (founding sodium and president of the Board of Directors) together with Eduard Fernando (General Manager) attended on behalf of Biocontrol Technolgies to the first meeting of the spin-offs organized by the University of Barcelona and the Bosch i Gimpera Foundation.
Why Cockroaches and Unicorns?
The slogan was: Cockroaches vs Unicorns, alluding to the concepts by which startups or spin-offs can be defined according to their growth and ability to adapt to change.
In this analogy, cockroaches represent the resilience characteristics of companies. Qualities such as the ability to adapt to change or slow but continuous growth are other similarities that this type of company shares with the popular insect. On the other hand, unicorn companies are those that experience exponential growth, which also implies a short period of time. It is not by chance that the unicorn is chosen as a representation of this type of company, since the mythological and fantasy animal is something exceptional that is not available to everyone.
Biocontrol Technologies, the second longest-lived spin-off.
Francesc Peremiquel, in his speech at the event, explained the evolution of the company, which was created from a university patent but has been able to reach commercialization, overcoming technological, regulatory and commercial challenges.
Biocontrol Technologies stands out for being the second longest-lived spin-off, that is, the oldest spin-off whose origin is linked to the University of Barcelona. Biocontrol supports the importance of achieving a transfer of knowledge from universities to society. since universities are ideal environments to generate knowledge, but it is essential that knowledge reaches the market in the form of products or services, contributing to the welfare of society as a whole..
Event attendees.
The rector of the Universitat de Barcelona, Joan Guàrdia, who was in charge of welcoming and thanking all the company managers for the knowledge transfer, emphasized that “Spin-offs are part of the 17th century university; if we do not generate knowledge transfer, we have no future.”
The active UB spin-offs attending the event are: Accure Therapeutics, Bluephage, Braingaze, Color Sensing, CYTES, DAPCOM DataServices, DBGen Ocular Genomics, Enantia, Gate2Brain, Impetux Optics, Kumux, LogMeal, Mind and Identity EYME-VR, Neurekalab, Nimble Diagnostics, Nostrum Biodescovery NBD, Oniris Therapeutics, Quilimanjaro Quantum Tech, Reveal Genomics, Smalle Technologies, Virmedex Virtual Solutiions y Virtual Bodyworks.
It should be noted that, in 2021, the UB spin-offs as a whole employed more than 160 people and had a turnover of nearly €10 M, and that all of them are technology-based and disruptive, providing innovative solutions in the field of artificial intelligence, the development of cutting-edge drugs or sustainable solutions for agriculture. All spin-offs have an impact on some of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations.
