Dateline: July 4, 2001

Founder & CEO of the nanotechnology integrator CMP Cientifica, Tim is a former European Space Agency engineer, who now runs conferences and information services and works closely with the VC industry to help select and guide investments in nanotechnology companies. A brief biography of Tim Harper is available on the CMP website.

Steve: What's the story behind CMP-Cientifica, Trends in NanoTechnology (TNT) and your new collaboration agreement with Spark Inversiones?

Tim: What we are trying to achieve with CMP, TNT and Spark are three separate activities, although they are all involved in nanotechnology. In essence they are the technologies, the information and the funding. I should make it clear that CMP Cientifica and Spark Inversiones are two very separate companies that are collaborating in the field of nanotechnology, while the TNT label covers all of CMP Cientifica's information services, whether conferences or publications.

CMP Cientifica has been involved in nanofabrication for a long time, since I was at ESA in fact. Over the last four years we have worked with both clients & suppliers to develop tools and techniques with nanometer precision. Unfortunately, most of our work is covered by NDA's so I can't tell you as much as I would like to.

CMP Cientifica also coordinates the Phantoms network, an EU funded network on Nanoelectronics and NanoSpain, a more local network. Our experience shows us that the best way to advance technology is to bring together a wide range of experts, and get them to talk to each other. That's where the problems get solved, and it helps reduce duplication of effort. The TNT conferences are a great enabler for cooperation, and we have an excellent relationship with the NSF in the US, that allows us to get a truly global perspective on nanotechnology.

TNT Weekly was born out of the realization that most people outside the scientific community had almost no idea what nanotechnology is. In most people's minds, nanotechnology is tangled up with miniature robots, grey goo and terraforming Mars. You may think that the science fiction associations don't matter, but if you are looking for funding for a nanotechnology related business, it means you'll have a tough time convincing anyone to invest. VCs aren't in the business of investing in 30-year R&D projects, they need shorter term returns on their investments, but that's not the way most VCs see nanotechnology.

Essentially what we are doing with TNT Weekly is trying to provide clear, unbiased factual information about nanotechnology. The fact that it is as popular with the investment community as with the scientific community indicates we're doing something right.

Given that we have the technologies, and the information, the only remaining obstacle is getting funded. Most VC companies are staffed by financial professionals, and they can bring in analysts for whatever market sectors interest them. With nanotechnology there is no market to speak of, so how do you get a handle on where to invest? In fact you don't, and lack of information raises the risks, so the investment goes into better-understood markets.

What we are doing with Spark is bringing together our knowledge and experience of nanotechnology, with their expertise in early stage investing. This means that you'll be presenting your business plan to people who understand your market, and that's crucial for any kind of business success. Imagine that, a VC who really understands nanotechnology - for me that's a dream come true, and we hope it will be for European nano entrepreneurs.

Steve: What sort of environment, discussion and progress was there at TNT 2000 and what can be expected from TNT 2001?

Tim: The TNT conferences can be divided into two themes, science & networking. We keep these running together by having reasonably short lectures, followed by long coffee breaks & lunches. Organizing the conferences in old monasteries in medieval walled cities such as Toledo and Segovia certainly helps the atmosphere. What I always like to see is little knots of people frantically discussing fine points of technology, if you can get this going then the conference will be a success. TNT 2000 was our first conference on nanotechnology, and the proceedings have just been published in the IOP journal "Nanotechnology." This year we have a much more global participation, with support from both the EU and the NSF, and we've noticed a lot more industrial participation, which is vital if we are to get nanotechnology out of the lab and onto the market. TNT 2001 will also feature a lot more breakout meetings during the coffee breaks, where people can discuss specific themes.