Predicting Startup Success: (Episode 2) Why is deep tech so hard to predict?
from CambridgeJBS Hosted by Cambridge Judge Business School
Why do some breakthrough technologies become world-changing companies while others never make it beyond the lab? In this episode of Predicting Startup Success, host Isabel Welpe is joined by Ramana Nanda, Professor of Entrepreneurial Finance at Imperial Business School and Director of the Institute for Deep Tech Entrepreneurship, to explore one of entrepreneurship's most difficult prediction challenges: deep tech. Unlike many startups, deep tech ventures are built on advanced science and engineering, often requiring years of development, significant capital, specialised expertise and extraordinary patience. The usual signals investors rely on can be difficult to interpret, and progress rarely follows a straightforward path. Together, they examine questions such as: What makes deep tech so difficult to evaluate in its earliest stages? Which signals deserve attention, and which can be misleading? How do investors think about uncertainty when the answers may be years away? Why do some promising technologies attract support while others struggle to gain momentum? What role do universities, investors and institutions play in shaping outcomes? Are we asking the right questions when trying to predict success? From breakthrough science and venture financing to scale-up challenges and commercialisation, this conversation explores what it really takes to turn a promising technology into a successful company. Host: Professor Isabell Welpe, Technical University of Munich Guest: Prof. Dr. Ramana Nanda, Entrepreneurial Finance, Imperial College London
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