It has been a pretty hectic working week all round, given the continued development of the Prince of Wales Innovation Scholarships programme and the success our team has had in Japan in engaging with both top universities and a number of leading R&D companies.
We are also getting enormous interest from the USA with two companies already asking to take on scholars outside of our main funding programme.
However, there were three interesting personal events this week.
First of all, I finally met one of my sporting heroes, Gareth Edwards, when we were the double act at a MediaWales launch event in Cardiff.
Both Gareth and I are columnists for the Western Mail and had to face a barrage of questions from a gathering of the great and good of the business world, on the economy and rugby (Gareth spoke little about the former and I said nothing about the latter!)
The second was an interview with Nature magazine, arguably one of the most influential science journals in the World.
When I was a young Physics undergraduate, it was one of the aims of every scientist to get their name into Nature. Whilst this piece was not about any outstanding scientific discovery (I wish!), the Nature journalist seemed fascinated about our new scholarship programme and our focus on using this to boost the innovation potential of Wales, calling it a global first. Certainly, the article will boost the profile of the programme and our efforts in developing innovation across Wales.
Finally, a group of us are finally getting together to develop a new innovative business which has already interest from a number of venture capitalists. This has taken a couple of years from the initial idea, but the recent experience of MIT has certainly helped spur this forward and hopefully we can tie up the deal over the next few weeks.
Can't wait for next week....who said life was boring?
We are also getting enormous interest from the USA with two companies already asking to take on scholars outside of our main funding programme.
However, there were three interesting personal events this week.
First of all, I finally met one of my sporting heroes, Gareth Edwards, when we were the double act at a MediaWales launch event in Cardiff.
Both Gareth and I are columnists for the Western Mail and had to face a barrage of questions from a gathering of the great and good of the business world, on the economy and rugby (Gareth spoke little about the former and I said nothing about the latter!)
The second was an interview with Nature magazine, arguably one of the most influential science journals in the World.
When I was a young Physics undergraduate, it was one of the aims of every scientist to get their name into Nature. Whilst this piece was not about any outstanding scientific discovery (I wish!), the Nature journalist seemed fascinated about our new scholarship programme and our focus on using this to boost the innovation potential of Wales, calling it a global first. Certainly, the article will boost the profile of the programme and our efforts in developing innovation across Wales.
Finally, a group of us are finally getting together to develop a new innovative business which has already interest from a number of venture capitalists. This has taken a couple of years from the initial idea, but the recent experience of MIT has certainly helped spur this forward and hopefully we can tie up the deal over the next few weeks.
Can't wait for next week....who said life was boring?
Comments
There is a 'world of difference' between 'academia' and the practicalities(and boredoms)of business. Not many can hack it for all the fine words. After all that you have said and written I am sure you will not want to become part of the 'grant culture' so I don't expect that you will be applying for one! If you can get investment money out of Finance Wales that would be news indeed!
Let's hope you do better at business than you have been at politics (wrong horse wrong time) and that you don't try to implement all the classroom bollocks about 'entrepreneurship'.
As for 'innovative' you've got to be joking - why are you trying to re-invent the wheel?
What's needed in Wales is not 'innovative' but more 'competence'.
More details of the company will be posted soon but as it involves international venture capital and the deal is not yet done yet, you will have to wait and see (especially as only 1 in 10 proposals succeed).
No entrepreneurship - just a great idea that has already been tested and is 'innovative' in that it brings a new solution to an existing problem and, yes, it can be made here in Wales.
As for politics, perhaps the wrong place (although Guto bebb would say differently) but you can tell me I've backed the wrong horse in May 2010!
Can you really explain to a fish what it's like to walk on land?
One day on land is worth a thousand years talking about it. One day running a business has exactly the same kind of value.