University Science in the System of Commercializing Research Outcomes

Today, Kazakhstani education and science face an ambitious challenge: to transform academic knowledge into a tangible tool for economic growth. For a long time, domestic developments encountered systemic barriers, getting stalled at the stage of laboratory testing and failing to find a path to real production. However, a fundamentally different architecture of interaction between universities, the state, and business is currently taking shape in the country.

In an exclusive interview with our journal, Gulzat KOBENOVA, Vice Minister of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan, reveals the details of this large-scale reform. Why is the traditional "publication for the sake of publication" model becoming a thing of the past, and what constitutes the "valley of death" for innovative projects? How do scientific and technological hackathons help solve the challenges of such giants as Kazakhmys and ERG, and why does the success of innovation now directly depend on the initiative of the regions?

We discussed not only new instruments of grant support and the digitalization of scientific processes, but also tectonic shifts in the very philosophy of university activity. Read our article to find out how a "seamless" model of the innovation cycle is being formed and which universities have already become fully-fledged technological partners for the industry today.

– Gulzat Isbasarovna, how is the role of university science changing today, and why is commercialization coming to the forefront?

– A fundamentally new model of interaction between science, business, and the state is taking shape in Kazakhstan. Within this system, universities are becoming an integral part of regional economic ecosystems. Today, higher education institutions do not limit themselves to training personnel; they actively engage in identifying technological demands, developing specific solutions, and launching innovative production facilities.

The effectiveness of national innovation systems directly depends on the success of commercializing research outcomes. University science is gradually moving away from the traditional model, which was primarily oriented toward publications and the educational process. The main focus is shifting to practical relevance and the creation of products that are genuinely in demand by the market.

Through close alignment with regional governments (akimats) and enterprises, universities solve specific challenges faced by the regions, ranging from prototype creation to the implementation of technologies in mass production. This approach allows for the complete closure of the innovation cycle, starting from a business request and concluding with the manufacture of the finished product.

The principle of smart specialization is acquiring particular importance. Each region focuses on its competitive advantages, while universities act as centers of competence. They direct their scientific potential toward the development of priority sectors, such as agro-biotechnology or petrochemicals.

Ultimately, we are transitioning to a paradigm where science becomes a driver of economic development. The most critical indicator here is the ability to bring a development to the stage of commercial implementation, without diminishing the significance of the scientific novelty itself.

All of this transforms university science into a tangible tool for economic growth and builds sustainable technological chains.

Turning to specific results, today the commercialization of domestic science is measured by solid market indicators:

289 projects are already successfully selling their products on the market, 30 of them have expanded into exports, and the 8 largest projects have reached a sales volume exceeding 1 billion tenge each.

– What systemic mechanisms currently support the interaction between science and private capital? 

– Effective commercialization is impossible without a sustainable partnership between science and business. In practice, this interaction is often complicated by a difference in approaches: universities focus on long-term research, whereas business is interested in fast, measurable results and risk minimization.

To bridge this gap, instruments are being developed that help adapt research outcomes to market needs.

These include commercialization offices, acceleration programs, technology brokerage, as well as new formats of interaction, such as technology commercialization reactors. These platforms make it possible to align the interests of the parties and remove administrative barriers.

Project co-financing remains an important stimulus. Its share depends on the category of participants: not less than 25% for universities and research institutes, 30% for startups, and 45% for established enterprises. It is the established companies that demonstrate the highest level of engagement. They provide a significant portion of the funding, effectively sharing the risks with the state. This confirms that business is beginning to trust scientific developments and sees investment attractiveness in them.

– Speaking of the real sector, how is the interaction between universities and industrial giants currently being structured?

– This collaboration is increasingly being built around practice-oriented formats. Science and technology hackathons, held at universities with the participation of industrial giants, have become one of the most effective mechanisms.

Technical universities in Karaganda, Ust-Kamenogorsk, Kyzylorda, Aktau, and Petropavlovsk have already become platforms for such joint work. Together with companies like Kazakhmys, ERG, KazMunayGas, Kazatomprom, Qarmet, and others, scientists solve specific production challenges – ranging from raw material processing and environmental issues to digitalization and improving the efficiency of entire production facilities.

Leading research universities of the country, such as Satbayev University, KBTU, Nazarbayev University, and Auezov South Kazakhstan University (SKU), are also actively involved in this work. This format transforms universities into fully-fledged technological partners for the industry. Project teams are formed and solution prototypes are created within higher education institutions, which then receive funding and are implemented directly into production.

– Commercialization of scientific developments requires competencies that are not entirely familiar to scientists. In your opinion, what can help university researchers become successful technological entrepreneurs?

– Practice shows that universities more often act as project initiators rather than their primary executors. Out of 268 projects selected between 2022 and 2025, 107 were initiated by universities; however, in only 10 cases did they become direct grant recipients. As a rule, implementation is transferred to business partners.

Such indicators evidence the formation of mature ecosystems within these organizations.

The presence of commercialization offices and project management teams becomes a decisive success factor: they help transform ideas into proposals that are attractive to the real sector.

A sustainable partnership model is taking shape in the country, where universities create technologies and business ensures their implementation – from production to marketing and scaling. In this system, the viability of a project depends equally on the scientific idea and on the presence of a strong industrial partner.

– On what are the primary efforts to develop the commercialization system currently focused, and where do you see the main growth points?

– First and foremost, digitalization plays an enormous role. It increases transparency, improves manageability, and ensures data continuity at all stages of the project lifecycle.

Instead of building new systems during the digital transformation process, the proposal is to develop the already existing platform. This is planned to be achieved by introducing additional modules directly linked to the commercialization of the outcomes of scientific and scientific-technological activities.

This approach will make it possible to track the entire path of a project within a single environment – from receiving a grant to the launch of the finished product on the market. A unified database simplifies monitoring, eliminates the risk of double funding, and ensures the accumulation of a complete history of the activities of researchers and teams. In the long term, this will lead to the creation of a fully-fledged digital ecosystem where the interaction among scientists, business, and investors takes place in real time.

Among the priority development areas, I would also highlight the necessity of forming a commercialization ecosystem directly within universities and research organizations. First and foremost, this should be achieved through the development of commercialization offices oriented toward concrete market results. Equally important remains the integration of Kazakhstani science into international innovation chains, which opens up access to foreign investments and world-class best practices.

The current dynamics confirm a gradual transition to a model in which science acts as an economic driver. However, to solidify this status, a comprehensive approach is required: institutional reforms, the development of digital infrastructure, and the active involvement of business. Only through aligning the interests of all participants is it possible to create a sustainable system capable of delivering long-term socio-economic impact.

Since 2016, a system of grant funding for projects aimed at commercializing the outcomes of scientific and (or) scientific-technological activities (OSSTA) has been consistently taking shape and developing in Kazakhstan. Conducting the relevant calls for proposals has become an important instrument of state policy aimed at narrowing the gap between science and business, accelerating the implementation of developments into the real sector of the economy, and increasing the return on budget investments in science. Thanks to grant support, research teams and technological entrepreneurs have received viable mechanisms for bringing promising developments to the market product stage.

The significance of this work is determined not only by the growing number of supported projects but also by their contribution to the creation of new production facilities, job generation, increases in sales volumes of high-tech products, and the attraction of private investment.

Commercialization of OSSTA is gradually becoming one of the key drivers of the country's innovative development, contributing to the formation of a sustainable ecosystem of interaction between science, business, and the state.

Concrete examples of successful projects serve as visual confirmation of the effectiveness of the conducted calls for proposals. Let us consider the most indicative commercialization cases that demonstrate the practical return on the provided grant support.

Project "Development of Technology for Producing Mixed Vanadium Oxides for Vanadium Redox Flow Batteries" (Kyzylorda Region). The applicant for the project is "Institute of Physics and Technology" LLP, and the grant recipient is "Balausa Firm" LLP. The goal of the project is to develop and refine a technology for obtaining mixed vanadium oxides for the subsequent production of vanadium electrolyte required for vanadium redox flow batteries. Dry vanadium electrolyte is a new material for use in vanadium flow batteries. It solves the main problem of battery charging: its use eliminates the need to transport liquid electrolyte, which is a solution of vanadium of varying valences in sulfuric acid; instead, the electrolyte is prepared at the site of battery deployment. "Balausa Firm" LLP holds the rights to develop and exploit the Bala-Saukandyk deposit, located in the Kyzylorda Region of Southern Kazakhstan, until 2043 with the possibility of extension. The ore at this deposit differs from virtually all other primary vanadium deposits and can be processed at a very low cost.

Proprietary vanadium raw materials and technologies for producing vanadium electrolyte open up opportunities for the future manufacture of competitive vanadium batteries.

Project "Organization of the Production of Original and Elite Seeds of the New Spring Bread Wheat Variety 'Semyonovna'" (North Kazakhstan Region). The applicant and grant recipient is the "North Kazakhstan Agricultural Experimental Station" LLP, which offers a new variety of spring bread wheat to the market, adapted to unfavorable environmental factors. The variety has passed the State Crop Variety Testing of the Republic of Kazakhstan and is approved for sowing in the North Kazakhstan Region.

In addition to realizing breeding potential through the introduction of a new spring bread wheat variety into production and growing high-yielding seeds in seed plots, this project will help seed producers replace old varieties with the new recommended variety, which is more productive or superior to the replaced varieties in terms of economically valuable traits and properties. It will also increase the share of Kazakhstani-bred varieties in the total volume of sown spring bread wheat seeds.

– A lot is being said today about the development of innovation. What are the main challenges preventing the creation of a seamless chain from laboratory developments to industrial implementation?

– The key reason is the gap in the innovation cycle. In Kazakhstan, the early stages are supported quite effectively: idea generation, scientific research, and laboratory testing. The final stage also works reasonably well, when the product has already been tested and is ready to enter the market, and the risks for business are minimal.

However, between them lies the "valley of death" – the most difficult phase of bringing a development to practical application (TRL levels 4–6). This is the stage where a prototype is created, and piloting and testing under real conditions are conducted. It is here that the highest risks remain, and it is at this exact stage that most projects previously ground to a halt.

The task of the state is to close this systemic gap. To achieve this, a new instrument is being introduced: grant funding for research and development (R&D). It is specifically aimed at bringing developments to industrial application. The relevant amendments are currently under consideration in the Senate of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

The second problem is the weak link between science and the real sector.

Currently, we are forming a direct mechanism of interaction: through science and technology sessions, enterprises present scientists with specific challenges. Hundreds of researchers are already involved in this work, and dozens of technological demands have been formulated.

It is of fundamental importance that business co-finances such projects by at least 30%. This is the best verification of market demand: if an entrepreneur invests their own funds, it means the technology truly possesses market potential. In this way, we are transitioning from a model where science works in isolation to a system where it solves the real problems of the economy.

– How does Kazakhstan stand in global innovation rankings?

– International indicators confirm that the country possesses significant potential, but the system does not yet fully realize it.

Today, Kazakhstan ranks 81st out of 139 countries in the Global Innovation Index. It is important to understand that this is a comprehensive index encompassing 78 indicators, and it reflects not the activity of a single agency, but the coordinated efforts of more than 10 government bodies. This is precisely why innovation cannot be viewed as the function of an individual ministry – it is the result of the entire system's performance.

At the same time, we possess a distinct positive dynamic. In the Economic Complexity Index, we rank 55th; our positions have improved by more than 30 points in recent years.

Such a leap confirms the presence of a strong industrial base and opportunities for further economic diversification and complication.

The main problem is that the system has historically developed fragmentarily: science, business, support measures, and regions existed independently of one another.

To overcome this fragmentation, an Innovation Headquarters has been established under the chairmanship of the Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Its task is to synchronize the actions of all participants, set unified priorities, and transition from scattered decisions to a holistic innovation policy.

– How is the principle of "seamlessness" in innovation implemented in practice, and why is the regional aspect so important now?

– We are shifting the focus from supporting scattered projects to creating a complete innovation chain – from the initial idea to the product's market launch. This involves transitioning to a model where each stage is logically connected to the next and aimed at a specific economic outcome. Innovations must not remain in laboratories; their purpose is to become a part of production and generate added value.

Today, this process is being actively transferred to the regional level. The real economy is concentrated on the ground, and each region possesses its own industrial base and competitive advantages – be it agro-biotechnology, metallurgy, or petrochemicals.

The new model envisages the development of innovation with a view to regional specialization – right where real demand has already been formed. This allows us to move away from universal methods and allocate resources precisely and effectively.

Since January 1, 2025, the role of regional science has been strengthened – local executive bodies (LEBs) have been granted the authority to implement science and technology policy.

Thus, the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan "On Science and Technology Policy" provides for 12 competencies of LEBs in the field of science and scientific-technological activity.

According to the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan "On Local Government and Self-Government in the Republic of Kazakhstan," LEBs participate in the implementation of state policy in the field of science and create conditions for the development of science.

Under the Budget Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, expenditures on scientific research can be funded from local budgets, and local budget programs have been opened for all LEBs.

With the aim of forming an effective system of interaction between LEBs and the scientific community, Councils on Science have been established and are functioning under all LEBs. The LEBs of all regions have defined priority areas for the development of science, taking into account regional specificities.

In accordance with the instruction of the Administration of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, a target indicator for the development of science has been included in the regional development plans for 2026–2030.

To achieve this, the Ministry, jointly with the Institute of Economics of the Science Committee, conducted a decomposition of the indicator "Share of internal expenditures on R&D of GRP" across all regions and megacities. The calculations and the accompanying forecast for R&D funding were built upon the GDP forecast data from the Ministry of National Economy up to 2029. To date, local executive bodies have successfully integrated these indicators into their strategic plans.

Regional science and technology councils play a key role in this system. They collect demands from local enterprises, translate them into specific tasks for science, and support projects until the implementation stage. In this way, a direct link is formed: business defines a need – the region prioritizes the tasks – science proposes a solution – the technology is implemented into production. This approach allows for the creation of growth points across the entire country, engaging every region in the construction of a new economy.

The questions were posed by

Alexander PETRUKHIN

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ABSTRACT

Gulzat Kobenova, Vice Minister of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan, in an interview with our journal, speaks in detail about the large-scale transformation of Kazakhstani science. This refers to the transition from theoretical developments to the "science as a driver of the economy" model, where the key indicators become real commercialization and solving the technological challenges of the industrial sector.