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Good practice Imported

NTNU Technology Transfer AS — Trondheim's University Spin-off Engine

Norway · Trondheim · See the Norway profile · See the Trondheim profile

Evidence: Descriptive / self-reported Top 54% 67/100 · Ask Evidence Copilot about this practice

Norway's university technology-transfer office, jointly owned by NTNU and the Central Norway Regional Health Authority, has spun off 73 deep-tech companies since 2003 — including Kahoot!, which reached 40M+ monthly users in 180 countries by 2017.

73
Spin-off companies established (2003-2022)
~EUR100,000
Kahoot! proof-of-concept funding
40M+ 180 countries
Kahoot! monthly users (2017)
NTNU Technology Transfer AS — Trondheim's University Spin-off Engine

Details

Maturity
Established
Promoter
NTNU Technology Transfer AS
Period
2003–present
Region (NUTS)
NO06
Keywords
University technology transfer, IP licensing, deep-tech spin-offs, proof-of-concept funding

Context

NTNU Technology Transfer AS was established 2003, jointly owned by the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) and the Central Norway Regional Health Authority, to secure, manage and commercialise IP from research at both institutions -- evaluating disclosures, funding proof-of-concept work, filing patents, and creating spin-offs itself when no existing company will take on early-stage risk.

Results

As of 2022, NTNU TTO had established 73 spin-off companies spanning subsea robotics, cybersecurity and medical sensing. Its best-known success is Kahoot!: disclosed in 2006, funded with roughly EUR100,000 of proof-of-concept work, established as a company in 2012, with 40 million+ monthly users across 180 countries by 2017.

Conclusions

Beyond spin-off counts and the Kahoot! case study, NTNU TTO does not publish aggregate figures for portfolio-wide jobs, revenue or follow-on investment, so the full economic footprint of its 73 spin-offs cannot be independently verified.

Implementation
Indicative cost
Medium (€50k–€500k)
Time to results
Long (> 3 years)
Staffing & skills
NTNU TTO invention evaluators/patent officers, Business-development support for spin-outs

Conditions for success

  • Joint university + regional health authority ownership broadens IP pipeline
  • Proof-of-concept funding for early-stage disclosures
  • Willingness to create a spin-off and take equity when no existing company absorbs early risk

Common failure modes

  • No published aggregate jobs/revenue/follow-on-investment figures across the portfolio

Commonly funded by

National / regional programmes

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Data sources

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Attachments

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