The start-up deluge

There is an increasing feeling that we are short on new ideas to tackle the emergencies of our time: climate change, cancer and neurodegenerative diseases, shortage of resources of all kinds (starting with drinkable water), potential upcoming pandemics, and so on. Indeed, some studies show that papers and patents are becoming less disruptive over time, which means that patents and scientific publications are built on previous knowledge rather than proposing new solutions. Therefore, there is a..