The view from Angle

Venture capitalists who invest in start-ups are rare. If their picks are "spot on", they may have a winner. But funding start-ups takes a long time to bear fruit; and most often they end up as a write-off.

With that grim picture in mind, Andrew Newland already knew what he needed to do back in 1994 in order to sustain a long-term plan for seed investing when he started Angle Technology. He set out to form a team that could earn recurring revenues from consultancy, as a basis for funding start-ups. At the same time, the consultancy work could serve as a platform for spotting the next Microsoft - or trying to.

Angle, based in Guildford, UK, began trading its shares on London's Alternative Investment Market earlier this year. It works with scientists and inventors to form companies around their intellectual property. Given the rarity of such a group in Europe,  Thomas Lau, news editor of Science|Business, asked Newland how it works.

What criteria do you have for new investment?

We create the company from scratch. What we are actually looking for is technology that is totally developed: with research applications and academics with time and effort to develop the product. In addition we are looking for, at a minimum, that the intellectual property patent application has been launched - so, a strong science position.

How much money do you typically invest in these companies?

Typically Angle spends between £500,000 and £1 million on each. This is only part of the total funding because we seek outside investors - often venture capital groups. The company will get a lot more than what we invest in.

What's hot these days for investment?

One area is the whole area of in vitro fertilisation (IVF). We believe that our venture company, NovoCellus, has a product that could increase the success rates of IVF by 35 to 50 per cent. It's a very focused niche market. Also, one of our venture companies, Geomerics, addresses the market for film-quality visuals for computer game designers. To do this, the company draws on a new approach to applying geometric algebra developed by a group of four leading academics from the University of Cambridge.

What vision did you have when you started Angle?

We had a 25-year plan. We are a little bit ahead now. The key thing is to have high-calibre management.

Why is management so important?

The importance of management is like Jon Wilkinson winning the World Cup Rugby in Australia [November 2003]. Obviously Jon Wilkinson getting that goal was actually the key. Had he been injured in the last five minutes of that match and had to get a replacement, England might not have won.

What is like winning the World Cup Rugby for you then?

To get Angle to £20 million in revenues. [Turnover in the most recent financial year was £4.1 million.]

What do you envision will happen to Angle in five years?

In the next five years, Angle is going to be at least 10 times bigger. There will be US expansion. And within five years we will probably expand into other European countries, and just after 5 years we will be going to Asia Pacific.