@article{aeab487cbd2d4e6a89a46bcb790e4122,
title = "Commercializing LanzaTech, from waste to fuel: An effectuation case",
abstract = "This case describes the extraordinary growth story of LanzaTech, a New Zealand (NZ)-based company cofounded in 2005 by scientists Sean Simpson and Richard Forster. LanzaTech developed a microbe which fermented the waste gases generated from steel manufacturing to produce ethanol and other chemicals. This case builds on effectuation logic and entrepreneurial discovery to highlight the challenges and opportunities of research commercialization. The case is structured chronologically and outlines the steps that the entrepreneur has taken to build the technology from scratch. It covers the early phases of the company, focussing particularly on how LanzaTech developed, refined, patented and began to commercialize its research. A key strength of the case is its multidisciplinary focus. The case describes some of the crucial aspects of research commercialization including capital raising, developing a business model, forming partnerships and expanding internationally. The case also describes a company committed to retaining its research base in NZ, and some of the opportunities and drawbacks of operating in a small economy at a distance from key market players. ",
keywords = "New Zealand, entrepreneurship, innovation, international new venture, joint ventures",
author = "Brian Karlson and Cristiano Bellavitis and Nadine France",
note = "Funding Information: Simpson and Forster were unsure on how to fund the project, and were turned down by government research funding bodies and universities as well as local venture capitalists. {\textquoteleft}We had a great idea, but people just don{\textquoteright}t start up big biotech companies in New Zealand very regularly{\textquoteright}. They eventually raised seed capital from two scientists running their own company, Biodiscovery. The scientists liked and understood the science behind the project. They invested NZ$100,000 (NZ$40,000 in cash and NZ $60,000 in laboratory space), which allowed Simpson and Forster to hire one staff member to continue developing the microbe, while they focussed on raising more capital. They approached the Foundation for Research, Science and Technology (FRST) and raised a grant which matched the Biodiscovery Funding Information: In September 2013, LanzaTech had been awarded a US$4 million grant by the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy of the US Department of Energy to extend LanzaTech{\textquoteright}s core fermentation technology. The focus of the grant was on reducing waste methane emissions from remote oil wells, coal seam and coalmine gases as well as landfill biogas often located in remote areas or released in relatively low volumes making them uneconomical to convert into other products. The ultimate goal of the research was to increase the intensity of the LanzaTech bioreactor to produce fuels and chemicals more efficiently, and economically at a smaller scale16. Publisher Copyright: Copyright {\textcopyright} Cambridge University Press and Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management 2018.",
year = "2021",
month = jan,
doi = "10.1017/jmo.2017.83",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "27",
pages = "175--196",
journal = "Journal of Management and Organization",
issn = "1833-3672",
publisher = "eContent Management Pty Ltd",
number = "1",
}