How can you become a deep tech entrepreneur?
Deep tech has commanded the attention and imagination of researchers and policymakers alike, with their entrepreneurs celebrated as leaders of the next frontier of innovation. Deep tech has commanded the attention and imagination of researchers and policymakers alike, with their entrepreneurs celebrated as leaders of the next frontier of innovation.
In our brief How can you become a deep tech entrepreneur?, we closely examine a challenge at the heart of research commercialisation: Technically strong ventures can still struggle when founding teams lack the entrepreneurial and transversal capabilities needed to move an innovation from the lab towards the market.
Why the deep tech skills gap matters
Universities face a distinct commercialisation challenge when developing next-generation talent: The capabilities needed to discover a technology are not the same as those required to build a venture around it. Unlike standard technology ventures, deep tech companies are based on scientific or engineering breakthroughs rather than incremental improvements to existing products or services. Their development often involves longer research and development cycles, complex technical processes, and substantial investment. As a result, commercial success depends on more than scientific excellence; teams must connect specialist knowledge with market understanding, business judgement, and the ability to work across disciplines.
The pressure to make that connection is growing. European policymakers, universities, investors, and businesses are placing greater emphasis on deep tech as a route to innovation in fields such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, biotechnology, and climate technology. The European Innovation Council allocated EUR 1.4 billion through its 2025 Work Programme to support research and high-potential start-ups. Yet a smaller share of European deep tech start-ups reaches market maturity than comparable ventures in the USA and East Asia, pointing to weaknesses in the pathways that turn strong research into scalable businesses.
Where deep tech teams lose momentum
Technical depth without breadth
Technical expertise forms the foundation of deep tech entrepreneurship, providing the starting point for a process that draws on a wider range of capabilities. Teams also benefit from curiosity about neighbouring disciplines and the ability to combine perspectives across fields. Cross-disciplinary awareness helps founders connect theoretical research with practical applications, while reducing the risk that technical development becomes detached from the problem the venture is trying to solve.
Commercial capability arrives too late
University-based spin-outs often begin with strong research and development capability and less entrepreneurial experience than teams formed in other settings. Academic founders may also face institutional incentives, contractual obligations, career concerns, or a lower tolerance for risk. Business development, financial management, market discovery, and intellectual property knowledge therefore become important complements to the science underlying the technology. When these capabilities are missing, teams can default to a technology-push approach that prioritises technical milestones without giving equal attention to market and business milestones.
Transversal skills are treated as secondary
Communication, networking, emotional intelligence, teamwork, and resilience can determine whether specialist knowledge translates into progress. Founders must explain complex research to investors, customers, research organisations, and other stakeholders, while also building trust inside multidisciplinary teams. Networking can unlock information about market needs or regulatory pathways, and resilient leadership helps teams sustain momentum through technical setbacks, funding obstacles, and other uncertainties common in deep tech commercialisation.
Competency needs change over time
The is no fixed formula for the right mix of skills across a venture’s development. An early-stage technical team may need outside support to assess market needs, while a more mature company may need stronger financial modelling, investment, or scaling expertise. Incubators and accelerators therefore need to recognise changing competency gaps rather than apply a standard package of support to every venture.
How universities can foster more balanced deep tech teams
Universities, pre-incubators, and accelerators can respond by treating skills development as part of the commercialisation process. That includes identifying gaps in founding teams, developing existing members where possible, and bringing in specialist expertise when required. Mentorship is most useful when it is grounded in the realities of a particular country or sector and helps entrepreneurs think critically rather than simply follow prescriptive advice.
Training should also extend beyond generic entrepreneurship. Deep tech founders may need support with financial planning, risk management, customer discovery, regulation, intellectual property, technical validation, communication, and collaborative project management. Networks of alumni, industry experts, investors, and experienced founders add another layer of learning and possibilities. The ecosystem around deep tech entrepreneurs may enable them to access to research facilities and prototyping infrastructure, ultimately helping teams test and validate technologies as they progress towards market readiness.
What institutional support looks like
ETH Zurich illustrates how an institution can combine research strength with structured entrepreneurial support. Alongside its research infrastructure, it offers business coaching through the Pioneer Fellowship Programme, entrepreneurial leadership development, investor-facing events, and information about funding opportunities. In 2023, the university generated the highest spin-out value among European universities, showing the potential of an ecosystem that supports both technology development and the capabilities needed to commercialise it.
The wider lesson is that deep tech talent support works best when technical, entrepreneurial, and transversal development are connected. A strong scientist does not need to become the sole expert in every business function, nor it should be expected from them. Founding teams, however, need access to the right capabilities at the right time. Universities and incubation programmes can help by making those skills easier to build, source, and integrate.
Turn expertise into deep tech impact
Bridging the deep tech skills gap requires institutions to look beyond the quality of the underlying technology and invest in the people and teams responsible for taking it forward ethically. Download Bridging the deep tech skills gap to access the full analysis of the competencies deep tech ventures need, as well as the practical actions that can strengthen university-based commercialisation support.
Ready for more?
Embarking on a deep tech entrepreneurial journey requires a unique blend of technical expertise, business acumen, and strategic support. To know more about the needed skills to develop as a deep tech innovator, you can read the Essential skills for thriving as deep tech entrepreneurs article. You can also check out the Building Europe’s deep tech ecosystem: The role of universities article if you are interested in knowing more about examines how European universities can bridge the commercialisation gap in deep tech.
Frequently asked questions
What is deep tech?
Deep tech refers to innovations built on scientific or engineering breakthroughs that are difficult to reproduce and can lead to disruptive products or services. Currently, these ventures involve groundbreaking and advanced fields such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, biotechnology, and climate technology. Such fields are characterised by longer development cycles, greater technical and financial demands than most conventional technology start-ups.
What skills do deep tech entrepreneurs need?
Deep tech entrepreneurs need a combination of technical, entrepreneurial, and transversal competencies. Technical expertise provides the scientific foundation, while business development, financial management, market understanding, and intellectual property knowledge support commercialisation. Communication, networking, teamwork, emotional intelligence, and resilience help multidisciplinary teams work effectively and engage investors, customers, and other relevant stakeholders.
Why does the deep tech skills gap emerge?
The deep tech skills gap often emerges because founding teams are strong in research and development but lack experience in commercialisation, business development, or team leadership. Competency needs also change as a venture develops, so skills that are sufficient during early technical work may no longer be enough when the company begins testing markets, raising investment, or scaling.
How can universities help bridge the deep tech skills gap?
Universities and incubation programmes can bridge the deep tech skills gap by combining training, mentorship, networking, specialist support, and access to research facilities. They can help teams identify missing competencies, develop existing founders, bring in external expertise when needed, and provide sector-specific guidance on areas such as regulation, intellectual property, financial planning, and commercial validation.
