Industry Is Your Best Laboratory

A curious thing happened when Bob Langer's lab started spinning out companies: his academic research got better. Not just more applied - fundamentally better.

While others saw industry work as a distraction from "real science," Langer discovered something different: industry wasn't just a place to apply academic insights. It was a powerful generator of new ones¹.

Most of us have this backwards. We think great science happens in academic labs, and industry just applies it. But look closer at how breakthrough insights actually emerge, and a different pattern appears.

Research into academic-industry relationships reveals something surprising: some of the deepest scientific insights come from researchers who work at the intersection of academia and industry².

These boundary-spanning scientists often produce work that not only advances fundamental understanding but also finds practical application³.

What makes this pattern especially interesting isn't just the quantity of output - it's the quality and reach of the work. When researchers engage meaningfully with industry, their work tends to address more fundamental questions that emerge from real-world complexity⁴.

Think about what happens when academic theories meet industrial reality:

1. Better Questions Emerge

When theory meets practice at scale, the gaps in our understanding become glaringly obvious. Real-world implementation reveals the fundamental questions we still need to answer⁵.

2. Data Gets Real

Industry work provides access to data and phenomena at scales no academic lab could match. This scale often reveals patterns that drive new theoretical insights⁶.

3. Feedback Loops Tighten

The cycle between hypothesis and test accelerates dramatically. What might take years to validate in a traditional academic setting can be tested much more quickly when industry resources are involved⁷.

Look at recent Nobel Prizes in science, and you'll notice something interesting: many laureates did their foundational work while maintaining connections to industry problems.

Take Frances Arnold's revolutionary work on directed evolution. Her insights didn't come from pure academic pursuit - they emerged from trying to solve real industrial challenges.

As she noted in her Nobel lecture, the practical demands didn't dilute her science; they made it sharper⁸.

How do successful scientists use industry as their lab? Research into effective academic-industry partnerships suggests three key approaches⁹:

1. Strategic Engagement

• Use industry problems to identify fundamental questions
• Let scale reveal what theory missed
• Use real-world data to test academic hypotheses

2. Resource Leverage

• Access industrial-scale testing facilities
• Use commercial data to validate theories
• Apply academic insights to industry problems

3. Knowledge Flow

• Let practical challenges inform research questions
• Use academic rigor to solve industry problems
• Create virtuous cycles between theory and practice

D'Este and Perkmann's research shows that this approach creates multiple benefits¹⁰:

1. Research Enhancement

Industry engagement often leads to new research projects and insights that wouldn't have emerged otherwise.

2. Resource Access

Industry partnerships can provide access to data, equipment, and materials that enhance academic research capabilities.

3. Knowledge Exchange

The flow of ideas between sectors often leads to unexpected breakthroughs in fundamental understanding.

The next wave of scientific breakthroughs won't come from isolating theory from practice. They'll come from scientists who understand that industry isn't just a place to apply science - it's a powerful tool for advancing it.

Because sometimes the best way to see further theoretically is to engage practically.

eady to make industry your lab? Start here:

Find Your Interface

• Which industry problems touch your research area?
• What practical challenges need deeper theory?
• Where could your expertise add unique value?

Design Your Experiment

• What small industry collaboration could you start?
• Which company's data could inform your research?
• How could you test theories at industrial scale?

Take One Step

Choose something small but significant. Something you could do this month that connects theory with practice.

References:

¹ Langer, R. (2016). "Academic entrepreneurship: How to bring your scientific discovery to a successful commercial product." NPJ Science of Learning, 1(1), 1-7.

² D'Este, P., & Perkmann, M. (2011). "Why do academics engage with industry? The entrepreneurial university and individual motivations." The Journal of Technology Transfer, 36(3), 316-339.

³ Baba, Y., Shichijo, N., & Sedita, S. R. (2009). "How do collaborations with universities affect firms' innovative performance? The role of 'Pasteur scientists' in the advanced materials field." Research Policy, 38(5), 756-764.

⁴ Perkmann, M., et al. (2013). "Academic engagement and commercialisation: A review of the literature on university-industry relations." Research Policy, 42(2), 423-442.

⁵ Siegel, D. S., & Wright, M. (2015). "Academic Entrepreneurship: Time for a Rethink?" British Journal of Management, 26(4), 582-595.

⁶ Cohen, W. M., Nelson, R. R., & Walsh, J. P. (2002). "Links and Impacts: The Influence of Public Research on Industrial R&D." Management Science, 48(1), 1-23.

⁷ Lander, B. (2016). "Boundary-spanning in academic healthcare organisations." Research Policy, 45(8), 1524-1533.

⁸ Arnold, F. H. (2018). "Innovation by Evolution: Bringing New Chemistry to Life." Nobel Lecture, Stockholm: The Nobel Foundation.

⁹ Perkmann, M., & Walsh, K. (2009). "The two faces of collaboration: impacts of university-industry relations on public research." Industrial and Corporate Change, 18(6), 1033-1065.

¹⁰ D'Este, P., & Perkmann, M. (2011). "The New Age of Academic-Industry Collaborations." Studies in Higher Education, 36(1), 63-80.