The University of Barcelona managed more than 800 research and transfer projects during 2022
During 2022, the University of Barcelona (UB) managed 819 research and transfer projects, valued at 53.98 million euros. In addition, 17 technologies were licensed and two new spin-offs were created: Virmedex Virtual Experiences and Nimble Diagnostics. These are the main figures extracted from the activity report of the Bosch i Gimpera Foundation (FBG), the knowledge and technology transfer office of the UB.
This 2023 marks forty years since the FBG has been working to transfer the research results generated at the University of Barcelona to society, through contract research, the creation of spin-offs and commercialization of technologies, materials and licenses. In this sense, last year the UB had 1,736 active projects that were managed from the FBG, it obtained 40.75 million euros in grants, and a total of 729 companies and institutions contracted research from the UB.
In terms of business creation, the spin-off Virmedex Virtual Experiences, in which both the UB and the Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC) own shares, was created to develop gamified software for specialised training in the medical sector. The UB also contributed to the establishment of Nimble Diagnostics, a spin-off of the Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), the UPC and the UB, which is developing the first medical device to monitor patients with implanted stents, thus avoiding serious complications and improving the clinical management of millions of patients every year.
In the area of business creation, the FBG also assessed 15 entrepreneurial projects linked to the UB. Overall, the University owns shares in a total of 23 companies, which have created more than 200 jobs.
The UB currently has 135 patents available for transfer, and in 2022 17 licensing contracts were signed with companies that use technologies developed at the UB.
Awards and grants
As is the case every year, the Bosch i Gimpera Foundation has contributed to the transfer of knowledge with the presentation of several awards. Thus, the Antoni Caparrós prize for the best knowledge transfer project was awarded to Josep Maria Suñé Negre for the project “Firocoxib: generic anti-inflammatory approved for dogs” and Santi Seguí for “Artificial intelligence to improve the diagnosis of colorectal cancer”. ColorSensing, a spin-off of the University of Barcelona, was awarded the Senén Vilaró prize to the best innovative company.
In addition, the FBG awarded 100,000 euros to the four following projects within the framework of the seventh edition of the Fund for the Promotion of Innovation (F2I): a tool to predict the degree of neurodevelopment in babies born with low birth weight using artificial intelligence, a project led by Dr. Carlos Escera, from the Faculty of Psychology; 3D passive labels, led by Dr. Neus Vidal, from the Faculty of Physics; new metal-based anticancer agents for photodynamic therapy, led by Dr. Vicente Marchán, from the Faculty of Chemistry; and the use of organoids as an in vitro health product, led by Dr. Sandra Acosta, from the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences.
40th anniversary of the Bosch i Gimpera Foundation
Throughout 2023 and part of 2024, the Bosch i Gimpera Foundation of the University of Barcelona will celebrate its 40th anniversary. For four decades, the FBG has played a key role in fostering collaboration between academia and business. It has promoted the creation of numerous companies based on university research, thus contributing to the economic and technological development of society. It has also provided financial support and advice to innovative research projects, consolidating the University of Barcelona as a benchmark in the generation of cutting-edge knowledge.
On the occasion of its 40th anniversary, the FBG reaffirms its commitment to continue promoting interdisciplinary collaboration and knowledge transfer, seeking to build a future in which innovation and research remain key drivers of social and economic progress.