TIIVIK programme: how to connect research, business, researchers and students

The TIIVIK programme for developing research-driven business ideas is designed for researchers and students who want to develop research-intensive business ideas, build strong entrepreneurial teams and promote innovation, science-based entrepreneurship and the practical application of research results in society. A total of 19 researchers and 26 students from the University of Tartu, Tallinn University of Technology and the Estonian University of Life Sciences registered for the TIIVIK programme.

Programme structure and activities

The first phase of the TIIVIK programme activities included regular hybrid seminars covering different aspects of research-intensive entrepreneurship, such as product and service design, marketing, intellectual property, and teamwork. According to the organising team, the hybrid seminars were effective, but on-site participation generated more active discussions. The seminars helped create contacts between the researchers and students and align their perspectives. The participants found the seminars useful and relevant, particularly emphasising the opportunity to learn from real-life examples. In the future, the organisers consider forming the teams earlier so students can delve deeper into research and apply their knowledge at an earlier stage, thereby providing even greater support to the researchers.

Importance of the programme and future outlook

On 11 June, ten teams that had made it to the final phase of the programme presented their ideas at the Delta centre to Tõnu Esko, Vice Rector for Development at the University of Tartu, Professor Karin Kogermann, Head of the Institute of Pharmacy, Karl Viiol, consultant at Tartu Business Advisory Services and mentor of the project and Sven Lilla, Manager of Space Tech Development at Tartu Science Park. There were exciting discussions; many thanks to all the participants, mentors, and organisers! The programme gave students an opportunity to solve real problems together with UT researchers, gaining entrepreneurial experience. For researchers, it offered a platform to explore the business potential of their research and a practical opportunity to acquire entrepreneurial knowledge.

The ten projects that participated in the final phase:

• Personomist
• E-TARU
• Topic Analyzer
• FireSand fuel tablets
• Hedgehog – smart ring
• 3-D Scanner – Orbitoscope
• Bioinformation Program
• SnowShine
• Track for AI
• Smart Monitoring for Submarine and Hydrogen Infrastructure

Mihkel Tammo, the University of Tartu’s Head of Entrepreneurship and one of the mentors for the TIIVIK programme, said: “In my opinion, TIIVIK started to fill the gap that previously existed in our entrepreneurship services: bringing together researchers and students. As a mentor, it was great to peek into the dynamics, see what works, and help make sense of how to apply the strengths of both parties. This format is here to stay, and the pilot programme marked the beginning of a development path from which we will benefit greatly in the future.”

Organising team and partners

More about the programme

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Business development program “TIIVIK” is funded by the European Union's Structural Funds through the public procurement 278968 "Developing Estonian startup ecosystem and startup incubation programs: Part 1 - Developing the deep-tech startup ecosystem.

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