Like most other venture capital investors, incTANK looks for teams and companies that share several fundamental characteristics, such as market potential, technology, team and academic/geographical focus. However, not all elements may be present at the early-stage of development. To help guide the entrepreneur in preparing for an introduction to our team, we provide a set of characteristics that are attractive to the early-stage investor.

Market Potential

In order to secure attractive returns to our investors, incTANK looks for venture start-ups with substantial market potential that will lead to a significant exit valuation within a reasonable investment horizon. This may be an opportunity to fund a disruptive technology that revolutionizes a large, existing market segment or a niche start-up that will come to dominate a new, fast-growing market. incTANK is also interested in investments that have global market potential, so that we can leverage our international network to capture greater value for our portfolio companies.

Technology

incTANK invests in start-ups with proprietary, unique, and defensible technologies. Typically these technologies are capable of patent protection or other intellectual property rights that will provide market protection from existing or future competitors. incTANK’s main focus is on start-ups in the computational sciences, life sciences, and material sciences.

Computational science is not just traditional IT, but extends to complex software applications and electrical engineering innovations. This may be a hardware product in the form of a medical device, a software application that solves complex problems in a new manner, or a visualization technology that renders information in a novel, intuitive way. Life science is an active area of incTANK investment. Our particular interest and experience is in medical devices, laboratory equipment/devices, and anti-inflammatory therapeutics. An actively growing area of investment is in material science. This can range anywhere from nano-scale structures for the semiconductor industry to new polymer technologies for flexible displays.

incTANK often looks beyond traditional VC investment categories, and will consider innovations or emerging nanotechnologies that cut across or lie only partly in the above areas of interest.

Team

Ultimately, incTANK invests in talented teams – smart people who have the commitment, domain knowledge, and entrepreneurial drive needed to make their visions a reality. We take time to develop a long-term relationship with our entrepreneurs, often providing early advice on a pro bono basis even before making an investment. This allows everyone involved to become well acquainted with each other, the technology, and the market. One of incTANK’s key contributions during this process is the ability to identify experienced management and skilled technical human resources that can complement the existing team. We prefer that the team itself has invented – or has intimate knowledge of – the core technology, even if it is to be licensed from a research institute.

Innovation & Geographic Focus

We are committed to helping universities commercialize their innovations, and to supporting entrepreneurs in taking an early-stage technology through to commercial success. The incTANK Cambridge office is strategically located between MIT and Harvard University, and is within easy commute to many other Boston area universities. The incTANK Tokyo office is located on the research campus of the University of Tokyo, where our team works with the technology licensing office to identify promising opportunities. We also draw on an extensive professional network across the local entrepreneurial and venture capital communities for qualified referrals.

Because incTANK works closely with our portfolio companies at the critical startup-phase, we invest in companies within reasonable traveling distance from our offices. More distant companies may still be a potential candidate for funding if there is an interest in relocating or they are in close proximity to one of our co-investors.