Student looking to start a company

I’m a graduate student. I want to start a company or organization.

You have a fantastic idea! You have collaborators, and you have given a lot of thought to how to organize your endeavor. Great!

Before you proceed too much further, undertaking the discussions below will help avoid major issues:

1.  How will you balance your entrepreneurial activities with your research and academic obligations – in other words, is there a conflict of commitment? To what extent, if at all, will your entrepreneurial activities impact your academic milestones? Discuss with your academic or research advisor.

2.  Explain to your academic or research advisor the topic of your proposed start-up and determine if your entrepreneurship and research activities are separate and distinct in terms of technical scope (is there any potential overlap?). In other words, the research you are doing in the lab is fundamental and by its nature publishable, while commercialization activities are very distinct from research activities and are intended for financial gain.

Any entrepreneurship activity that is not clearly separate and distinct in scope from an existing research obligation is generally not permitted. 

This Startup Scenario flowchart provides guidance for different circumstances.  For general information, see Starting a Company webpage.

3.  Determine whether or not you plan to use any MIT-owned technologies. 

Yes, I’m planning to use MIT-owned technologies
  • Review “Pre-company” & “New Company” lanes of the Startup Scenario flowchart and take appropriate steps with Conflict of Interest Office and the Technology Licensing Office (TLO).
  • Contact the TLO to express an interest in starting a company using MIT technology; the TLO will then consider whether granting an option or license to your company is appropriate. In making its licensing decisions, the TLO considers many factors, including the availability of the intellectual property related to the MIT technology that your company seeks to use; the best way to commercialize the MIT technology; MIT’s obligations to third parties; and potential conflicts of interest.
 
No, I’m not planning to use MIT-owned technologies
  • Confirm your assumptions by reviewing the IPIA that you signed and by reviewing MIT’s Intellectual Property (“IP”) Policy. The Technology Licensing Office (TLO) at tlo-ipia@mit.edu is the best resource for any questions about specific IP ownership issues.
  • Review “No MIT IP lane” of the Startup Scenario flowchart and complete appropriate steps with the Conflict of Interest Office and the TLO.
  • If any IP not owned by MIT is relevant to the company, you (or your company) are responsible for seeking IP protection or obtaining necessary permissions to use such IP.
  • Students who have participated in MIT Sandbox, Delta V, or DesignX should refer to policies described here to ensure that appropriate conditions have been met for IP ownership.
  • Keep in mind that using MIT resources, including lab space and equipment, may have implications for IP ownership. Make sure to check with the space administrators or the TLO prior to using those resources.

4.  If any MIT faculty members/research staff will have any affiliation with your company, consider potential conflicts of interest for the MIT faculty members/research staff.

If this person has a supervisory role over your research, thesis, student teaching, academic work, or other area, involvement in your company creates an academic conflict of interest for both parties. Supervisory roles include but are not limited to academic advisor, research advisor, thesis committee member, supervising postdoc, research staff member, or subject instructor.

  • You must disclose this conflict of interest to your graduate officer, who may involve your department head or other personnel to identify potential paths forward. 
  • Conflicts of interest can occasionally be mitigated or resolved with a well-thought-out conflict management plan. Reach out to MIT’s Conflict of Interest Office to learn more. 

If the person does not have a supervisory role over your research, thesis, student teaching, academic work, or other area, then there is no clear academic conflict of interest. Supervisory roles include but are not limited to academic advisor, research advisor, thesis committee member, supervising postdoc, research staff member, or subject instructor.

See related MIT policies:

Office of the Vice Chancellor
ovc@mit.edu