A word from the CEO

Inven2 is grateful to everyone who has contributed to building business and helping patients through new inventions, clarification, clinical studies, and commercial results. When someone is willing to pay for products, services, and values created when knowledge is applied, we have succeeded together. Not only are research results coming into utilization in this way, they also bring funds back to inventors, for new research, more commercialisation projects, and important investments in start-up companies.

Photo: Inven2 / Moment Studio

Towards the end of this year, there are 125 ongoing commercialisation projects at Inven2, projects in various stages and of different magnitude. All projects are in collaboration with inventors at Oslo University Hospital, the University of Oslo, and the other healthcare institutions in the South-Eastern Norway Regional Health Authority, as well as cooperating research environments and innovation ecosystem. It is concerning that the number of new inventions (DOFIs) has continued to decline from last year, despite increased efforts for more innovation at the university and in the hospitals. We will do what we can to reverse this trend, so that society can benefit from more new innovations. 2023 has also been a tough year in terms of financing the commercialisation projects that are on their way to become new businesses. The Research Council’s programs have been significantly reduced, and other soft funding sources have dried up. Inven2 has used funds from previous successes to compensate for the financing gap and to maintain momentum in as many projects as possible.

The investment market has also been challenging in 2023. It has been difficult for startups to attract first-time investors, and towards the end of the year, it also became challenging to secure follow-up investments in companies that are developing well. Inven2 has invested from own capital in order to help new companies get going as well as in promising companies in the company portfolio. A total of 13 million kroner has been invested in 2023, including 3 million kroner in Serca Pharmaceuticals as the largest single investment. For the companies, it has been important that Inven2 has been able to invest against the trend during these times. We see it as an important task to invest to get start-ups through the first critical phases, companies that will become important parts of Norwegian industry in the future.

Clinical studies are the other part of Inven2’s operation and continue to do very well. There are now 462 ongoing clinical studies involving the hospitals and hospital pharmacies we assist. We contribute to patients from the far south to the far north of the country being offered to join clinical studies as part of their treatment options. We are proud of this and see that it is efficient for everyone when an agreement can be negotiated once but applies to several hospitals.

We enter 2024 with a broad horizon of opportunities. We hope the research institutions’ increased efforts in idea stimulation and innovation will yield results. It is positive that more and more people are considering entrepreneurship as a career path. Both are about people, those who create ideas and those who will create value from the ideas. We have gained much experience ourselves and have ambitions in 2024 to invest even more in startups in the early stages. The authorities are focused on building industry and ensuring that more Norwegian patients are offered to participate in clinical studies. Inven2 will work even closer with the innovation ecosystem at both local and national levels to achieve this. We have great expectations for the year 2024, and we look forward to using the competence, methods, networks, and capital we have built up over a long time to play an important role in the innovation chain from research to business.