The IP Driven Start-up Podcast | From lab to market - the real story of commercialising university research

In this episode, Marks & Clerk's Anis Naidu sits down with Professor Aline Miller, Associate Vice President for Enterprise at the University of Manchester and founder of Manchester BIOGEL, which raised over £4 million, built a global distribution network, and achieved a successful exit in 2023. Now developing her second venture, Molla Pharm, Aline offers a thoughtful reflection on a decade of commercialising university research, speaking with the clarity and candour that come from firsthand experience.

What to expect

Manchester BIOGEL grew out of ten years of academic research into peptide hydrogels - biocompatible materials with applications in tissue regeneration and drug discovery. The company's origin was deceptively simple: when collaborators couldn't replicate the formulations, Aline realised the real value wasn't just in the patents, but in the proprietary know-how behind the process itself. That insight shaped the entire IP strategy that followed - one that combined a university licence with trademarked product names and copyrighted protocols.

Aline is refreshingly honest about the early mistakes: a proposition so broad it aimed to solve cancer, heart disease, and liver failure simultaneously; no clear exit strategy; and an underestimation of how much grant funding could have reduced early equity dilution. She describes the pivotal role of an accelerator in forcing commercial clarity - narrowing the focus to a direct replacement for the dominant product in her sector - and the months-long process of negotiating a licence from the university with the help of an IP firm brought in for shares rather than fees.

The episode also covers the realities of working with investors whose expectations didn't match the long timelines of life sciences, the emotional complexity of stepping back from a company she co-founded with her husband, and what it actually takes to transfer IP and know-how when the time comes to sell.

With her second venture, Aline is applying every lesson learned - starting with the end game in mind, building on commercial expertise from day one and leveraging grant funding strategically. A masterclass in what academic entrepreneurship looks like the second time around.

To discuss your own IP strategy, speak to our team or download our free eBook, The IP-Driven Start-up here, or speak directly to Anis.

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