Entrepreneurial academics and regional economic development: the case of spin-offs in the London’s triple helix region

In this paper we show that London‟s universities have produced a large number of technology-based spin-offs with distinctive patterns. In particular, we show that the majority of the university-related spin-offs are small and medium-sized (SMEs) and concentrated in biomedical sectors as elsewhere (Shane 2006, Lawton Smith and Ho 2006). A high proportion are high growth or „gazelles‟ (OECD 2008, Bishop et al 2009) but more than a third have left the London region either at start-up or later. The paper explores the reasons for these patterns and policy implications.