Stanford Research Institute International

Stanford Research Institute International

VENTURES

Credit: sxc.hu

by SIGNE BRAY

The mother of many Stanford spin-offs The mother of many Stanford spin-offs

As long as Stanford students have been building hightech empires on the backs of their graduate research, the Stanford Research Institute – renamed SRI International – has been fueling innovation in Silicon Valley. SRI inventions are a ubiquitous part of our daily lives. If you use a mouse to interface with your computer, you have interacted with one famous example of SRI R&D. Developed in the 1960’s by Douglas Engelbart, the mouse was one of a series of innovations in computer interfaces that included early prototypes of a Windowsbased interface. Dubbed by Business Week as the ‘soul of Silicon Valley,’ SRI International has had a unique impact on the climate of innovation

in the region. In addition to a headquarters in Menlo Park that currently hosts 1400 employees, the institute has spun-off companies at a rate of approximately three to four per year for the past ten years.

Development and Departure of the Institute

Stanford’s directors first discussed creating a multidisciplinary research institute in the 1920s. Their goal was to provide Stanford professors the opportunity to work on commercial projects that could spawn new industries on the West Coast and, in turn, bolster the economy in the region. Coincidentally, nation-wide economic downturn of the 1930s, followed by the

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VENTURES dedicated to making a positive impact through innovation,” says Dr. Norman Winarsky, VP of Ventures, Licensing and Strategic Programs.

Magnetic ink character recognition. Credit: SRI International

“As a non-profit we are dedicated to making a positive impact through innovation” - Norman Winarsky

Second World War, shelved the project until the mid-1940s. At the end of the war, however, the idea of starting a research institute became increasingly more attractive as a means of stimulating innovation and the local economy. The Stanford Research Institute was founded in 1946 with a focus on the sciences, technology, economics and management. The timing could not have been better. The institute thrived in the booming post-war economy, developing and commercializing several successful products each year. SRI research led to the development of the first successful household detergent, Proctor and Gamble’s Tide. In the 1950s, SRI developed banking automation. One of the resulting products, Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR) continues to be used for processing checks. In the 1960s and 70s, amidst the controversial war in Vietnam, Stanford students protested the University’s dependence on government funding. On April 9th, 1969, several hundred students began a nine day occupation of Stanford’s Applied Electronics Laboratory. In response, the institute became independent of Stanford University in 1970, officially changing their name to SRI International in 1977.

A Multidisciplinary Structure

SRI International remains a private, nonprofit institute. “As a non-profit we are

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Research and development efforts are focused in five major divisions: Engineering & Systems, Policy, Information and Computing Sciences, Biosciences, and Physical Sciences. However, internal collaborations are a big part of what makes SRI attractive to clients. “Projects tend to be segmented into market areas, and thereby cross many disciplines,” says Winarsky. “For example a project dealing with Bio-Fuels will require expertise in Biology, Physical Sciences and IT.” Their ability to tap expertise that bridges disciplines is one way in which research at SRI transcends the typical model of academic departments. “Our theme is not about the individual. Our theme is to work as a solution provider to customers.” Research at SRI is largely funded by Government agencies, such as DARPA and the NIH, but they also do research on behalf of private clients, such as VISA, Toyota and Hitachi. Their business continues to grow, and they are strategic in their expansion. “There are two main ways in which we hire experts in a given area,” says Winarsky. “The first is if we bring in a contract and need the talent to execute that research, and the second is when we want to expand in a particular market segment, we would then target our search to fill that gap.” Winarsky predicts that SRI will continue to expand, even in the current, volatile, economic climate. “Important problems are not going to go away,” and as a solution provider, SRI’s services will continue to be necessary.

Half a Century of Innovation

Although SRI is no longer a part of Stanford, the two continue to collaborate on many important ventures. In the 1960s, Stanford and SRI built a 150 m-diameter radio antenna, which at the time of completion was the third largest antenna in the world. This Stanford landmark, now known simply

VENTURES as “The Dish,” was built to study solar winds by bouncing signals off spacecrafts. SRI International continues to manage The Dish on behalf of the U.S. government, and facilitates its use for research by Stanford and other qualified users. SRI’s influence has been felt throughout California and the world. They were pioneers in smog research in Los Angeles in the 1940s, and hosted the first national symposium on air pollution in 1949. Disney hired SRI to consult on the location for a proposed theme park; in 1955 Disneyland was built according to recommendation in Anaheim, California. On Dec 9th 1968, SRI researcher Douglas Engelbart performed what became known as the mother of all demos, at the Fall Joint Computer Conference in San Francisco. It was the public’s first glimpse of a computer mouse, hypertext, email and teleconferencing.

in which they tackle problems. Dr. Swan told the audience about research aimed at understanding aging from a cognitive and neurophysiological level. Complementing their basic research, SRI is also developing technologies aimed at characterizing and diagnosing movement and speech difficulties, as well as assistive robots. SRI has had many successes and continues to tackle important problems with a strategic and disciplined approach. More than fifty years after its conception, SRI remains a force of innovation in Silicon Valley.

To Learn More

For more information, visit SRI International’s website, www.sri.com.

ARPANET emerged in 1969 as the first global packet switching network, and a predecessor of the internet. SRI was one of the original four nodes, along with UCLA, UCSB, and the University of Utah. Today, much of the excitement at SRI comes from developing their innovations into spin-off companies, such as Nuance, which is currently developing naturalistic voice interface software, and PolyFuel, a fuel cell company. For roughly a decade SRI has taken an active and disciplined approach to nurturing promising technologies into independent companies. They are committed to providing a solid foundation on which their companies can prosper and grow.

SRI in the community

SRI international hosts the monthly “Café Scientifique” events in Silicon Valley. Last October’s discussion, led by SRI researcher Dr. Gary Swan, Director of the Center for Health Sciences, focused on understanding and assisting the world’s aging population. The so-called “silver tsunami” of aging baby boomers is forecasted to place an increasing burden on healthcare systems. SRI’s approach to this problem is mulitidisciplinary, and exemplary of the way

The Dish arrives to Stanford campus. Credit: SRI International)

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