In our evolving technological landscape, successful research collaboration between industry and academia requires deep technical and business relationships. I recently participated in a panel discussion hosted by Pedram Johari, Principal Research Scientist at the Institute for Wireless Internet of Things (WIoT) at Northeastern University, that explored the role of industry-academia collaboration in shaping research and driving innovation, and invited leaders from both sectors to share how these collaborations create groundbreaking advancements. From an InterDigital perspective, partnerships with academic institutions offer a unique opportunity to access fresh ideas in advanced research, utilize cutting-edge facilities, and recruit top talent.
Academic collaborations fuel innovation by combining academic researchers’ out-of-the-box thinking and with industry researcher’s skill in refining ideas for commercialization. In the field of wireless communications, some of the most valuable innovation hinges upon the technology being accepted within industry standards setting bodies like 3GPP. By working together, academia and industry can leverage their respective strengths to drive commercial success for novel technologies.
A barrier to greater collaboration between U.S. industry and academia on wireless technologies lies in an unexpected place, intellectual property (IP). Universities often cite the Bayh-Dole Act of 1980 as a reason to retain IP ownership in industry-funded projects, because certain circumstances require them to share a portion of royalties with inventors. This encourages universities to pursue longer-term licensing of standard essential patents (SEPs) rather than partnering early with industry to ensure standards adoption. Since universities generally don’t make efforts, nor have as their charter, to participate in industry standards, their success in SEPs has been poor. In fact, analysis of European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) data finds that globally universities have a near-zero track record in making SEP declarations. However, we also observed an improvement in university-driven SEPs being declared when an industry partner was involved.InterDigital recently responded to the National Science Foundation (NSF) request for comments on the proposed implementation of new IP provision options for public-private partnerships, with suggestions for policies to build stronger and more successful industry-academia collaboration for wireless standard-facing technology.
The discussion also uncovered other attributes for successful collaboration. For example, Rajesh Sood, Vice President and Client Partner at Tech Mahindra, highlighted that effective partnerships must balance academic freedom with the industry’s need to deliver consumer-ready products. In the future, NSF models must better incentivize private-sector investment while preserving research integrity.
From the perspective of academic institutions, universities play a distinct role in pushing the frontiers of knowledge. In fact, Josep M. Jornet, Professor and Assistant Director of the WIoT at Northeastern University, described academia as the “industry playground” where researchers take on high-risk, high-reward projects. He framed academic institutions as the “crazy division” of industry, willing to explore bold and experimental ideas that corporations might consider too risky. While universities excel at discovery, they rely on industry partners to translate these discoveries into practical and marketable products. To help bridge the gap between industry and academia, both sectors must foster deeper collaborations and engagements between corporate engineers and academic researchers.
InterDigital’s Research and Innovation Labs provide strong templates for these bridges. For example, our Labs in Conshohocken, London, and Rennes foster many avenues for hands-on collaboration, including a recent AI demonstration with UT-Austin. These deeper relationships accelerate innovation and provide academics with valuable insights into the business environment, while helping innovators prepare to deliver practical and market-ready solutions.
In today’s complex technological landscape, industry-academia collaborations drive innovation, translate research into real-world solutions, and maintain global competitiveness. For these collaborations to thrive, both sectors must work together to address business challenges like IP, in addition to technical challenges. By doing so, industry and academia can unlock transformative innovation, paving the way for technologies that shape a better and more connected future.