University of Florida sets new records in technology transfer metrics for fiscal year 2025
The University of Florida has once again demonstrated its leadership in innovation and technology transfer, setting new records in key metrics for fiscal year 2025, which ended on June 30. UF Innovate | Tech Licensing reported significant increases in technology disclosures, licenses executed, patent applications, and material transfer agreements.
The university registered 446 technology disclosures, a substantial increase from the 369 disclosures reported in the previous fiscal year. This record number of disclosures is a critical indicator of the translational research being conducted at UF.
"Our record number of technology disclosures is a great sign," said Jim O’Connell, assistant vice president of commercialization at UF. "Everything we do starts with those disclosures. They are the raw material for potential licenses and startups, everything."
When innovators share their discoveries with Tech Licensing, they begin the commercialization process that moves ideas out of the lab into the marketplace, where they can benefit the greater good.
These technologies undergo rigorous vetting by licensing teams to determine their potential. Some technologies may be deemed "too early" and go back to the inventors for further development. Those that proceed go through a prior art search to assess patent, copyright, or trademark availability. Some are marketed to find potential licensees, including entrepreneurs or established businesses.
In addition to technology disclosures, UF executed 131 licenses, up from 121 in the previous fiscal year, and 859 material transfer agreements, a slight increase from 848.
A license for a technology is like a contract to rent an invention or idea; the license gives the entrepreneur or company access to the intellectual property and permission to use the invention. In exchange, the licensee pays royalties, which benefit UF, the inventors, and the researchers’ department.
A material transfer agreement, on the other hand, is like lending an ingredient, such as a biological or chemical material, from your lab along with rules about how someone can use it.
To protect the inventions created at UF, the university also filed 455 patent applications, an increase from 418. On average, it takes 2 to 3 years before a patent is granted; according to data from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, only 50 to 60 percent of patent applications are eventually granted. This fiscal year, the USPTO granted UF 125 patents.
The number of startups created remained steady at nine, maintaining the university's commitment to fostering entrepreneurship.
The last time UF recorded such high numbers was in fiscal year 2020, when 132 technologies were licensed, 16 startups were formed, and 393 discoveries were disclosed. That year, UF was ranked No. 1 in productivity by the Bush Institute, highlighting the university's consistent excellence in innovation.
O’Connell praised the efforts of the UF Innovate team, acknowledging the collaborative work of the entire innovation ecosystem, which includes Tech Licensing, Ventures, Pathways, and Accelerate’s two incubator facilities, Sid Martin Biotech and The Hub. This ecosystem, which began as a tech transfer office in 1985, celebrates 40 years of building business on innovation to make the world a better place.
These achievements underscore UF's ongoing commitment to driving innovation and technology transfer, making it a leader in the field of academic entrepreneurship.