The inventor – investor relationship of an academic start-up

Problem: The increasing interest in academic, and general, entrepreneurship increases the need for venture capital. The venture capital is provided to the inventor by an external investor who gains financial or societal benefits from his investment. The increasing interest in entrepreneurship makes is interesting to understand the sources of power that influence the relationship between the investor and the inventor. Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to indicate how different sources of power influence the relationship between inventors and investors in academic start-ups. Methodology: This study has been carried out with a qualitative approach. Data has mainly been collected from four interviews at three different companies. The interviews were complemented with previous research findings and laws from the book of laws. Findings: The empirical findings indicate that the investigated relation mainly is influenced by the expertise from the inventor during the early stages of the start-­up. This indicates that the expert power is the most significant source of power. KeyWords: Entrepreneurship, Academic Entrepreneurship, Start-­ups, Academic Start-ups, Investor relationship, Venture Capital, New Ventures, Spin-­of