Note that we have changed our name to UiO Growth House. Articles written before 2023 use the old name Life Science Growth House.
So far, we have seen that it is useful to run internal value creation work where UiO's students and researchers are put in the driver's seat in interaction with the innovation ecosystem around us to put more knowledge to use.
We have already had 85 requests from students and researchers with immature innovation ideas. They have knocked on our door to get tailored counselling from the competent innovation advisers in the Growth House. They have been assessed for the maturity and relevance of the idea; whether counselling from mentors can be useful for the project in the phase they are in now; thoughts about the way forward and the establishment of a good framework for support for agreements, and not least access to the Growth House seed funds.
Through 2022, we have allocated NOK 3.2 million in seed funds to students and researchers from our owner faculties The Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences (MN) and The Faculty of Medicine (MED), but also from several other faculties at UiO. We see that the Growth House open door reaches out to the entire UiO, but we still have some work to do for more researchers and students to know about our innovation services.
The Growth House also aims to promote a stronger innovation culture and increased innovation activity at UiO both through internal collaboration and collaboration with external actors. We will work together on common goals and use each other's expertise. In this context, we are proud of our new innovation meeting place – the innovation hangouts – which is an excellent arena for building a bridge between academic research environments and the business actors around us.
We are also very happy that throughout the year, through close collaboration with the innovation ecosystem around us with companies, business clusters, incubators and accelerators and in close cooperation with student innovation associations, we have strengthened our work on student innovation. 24 students from MED and MN have had summer jobs through our student internship programme and students have had access to a lab place in the incubator ShareLab in Oslo Science Park. One of the student projects we have granted seed funding received Stud-ENT support from Innovation Norway this year and is already in place in the incubator Aleap in Oslo Science Park.
Finally, I would like to thank Oslo Science Park, which has welcomed us so well and is making arrangements for the Growth House to flourish and develop in an emerging innovative environment.
With this, I would like to say that I am very much looking forward to working with all of you around us, be it students, researchers, administration and managers at UiO and also continuing the fruitful collaboration with our external partners in 2023. I wish you all happy holidays and a happy new year!
Hilde Nebb
Professor, Innovation director
Life Science Growth House
2022 in text and pictures
5 min. with music
