Swaraj Singh Chauhan supervised by Prof. Ramesh Loganathan received his  Master of Science –  Dual Degree in Exact Humanities  (EHD). Here’s a summary of his research work on Understanding Gaps in Productisation of Computer Science Research:

India is experiencing an innovation upswing in many fields such as: pharmaceuticals, agriculture, space technology and especially in the area of IT/computer science. The Indian IT industry has a lot to offer: lower human resource costs, large talent pool, favourable government policies, access to capital, and advanced infrastructure that makes India the cost-effective Silicon Valley of the world. It also hosts a significant number of world-class research institutions producing handsome volumes of deep-tech computer science research. However, it has been observed that much of this research is unable to productise and become usable for markets in the real world This has resulted in a high volume of research with potential to disrupt markets but fail to carry through the ‘lab to land’ journey for a research output. This thesis is a study to understand the translation process of a research as a marketable product and to identify factors that impede or enable this translation. 

The productisation window for any relevant computer science research work is largely time sensitive. [1] Recent explosion in AI adoption fueled with a digital infrastructure has made many deep-tech Computer Science research areas to get production ready very fast. It has an associated shelf life during which it should be explored and leveraged for any sort of translational or productisation activity. Therefore, as a community engaging closely with research problems bridging disconnections between research labs and industry/market requires critical and timely interventions. 

While there are many research translation models available as a concept or practice, many are ineffective in explaining a seamless / smooth transition of any research work into an industry-consumable technology or product. Based on tacit knowledge & existing models of translation it is apparent to observe that due to the nature of the research ecosystem, its processes and the associated stakeholders within it, identifying potential translation flow is far from trivial. In order to understand the entire journey of a potential research translation, this thesis proposes a productisation flow that considers all potential channels through which a research work in computer science can transition into a market relevant product or an industry consumable technology. This thesis will cover the productisation flow in detail in the later chapters. 

In this study, we focus on understanding this gap in productisation from the perspective of research scholars who actually work on these projects. After an extensive literature study, the thesis focuses on highlighting the gap in considering ‘researchers’ as an active stakeholder in this entire productisation process. As a result, this thesis proposes a productisation flow of deep-tech research from lab to market translations that highlights the participation of researchers across various translational channels and their stages. This qualifies the need to understand reasons why research flow from lab to land is enabled or inhibited wrt researchers. 

We borrow from one of the prominent research translation frameworks – the Triple Helix Framework can be adapted to the specific contextual factors of India to support the development of innovation clusters. This involves government support, industry-academia collaboration, consideration of cultural and social factors, and a focus on regional economic development. This thesis assesses the role of ‘researchers’ as a primary stakeholder in the Triple Helix Framework. 

A structured survey was conducted across 50+ MS and PhD research scholars to identify reasons that enable or inhibit researchers towards productisation within top scientific institutes in India. Our study focuses on understanding the above from a researcher’s point of view by analysing their motivation and concerns. 

The thesis uncovers several critical insights into the gaps and enablers in the productisation of deep-tech computer science research in India. Key findings are summarised as follows:

1. Researcher-Centric Productisation Gap: The study highlights the underappreciated role of researchers in the ‘lab to market’ journey. Unlike traditional models, this thesis demonstrates that researchers are pivotal stakeholders who often face a disconnect from industry engagement, market requirements, and entrepreneurial skills, limiting the productisation of their work. 
2. Lack of Industry Connect and Product Thinking: Survey results suggest that limited exposure to industry experts and insufficient entrepreneurial or product thinking skills hinder researchers from effectively aligning their work with market needs. The research also indicates that this disconnect exists at various stages of ideation and execution, impeding practical applicability of innovations. 
3. Short Productisation Window: Deep-tech research has a time-sensitive shelf life. The study identifies that computer science innovations often lose relevance due to delays in testing, deployment, industry translation, highlighting the need for timely interventions. 
4. University Success Metrics Misalignment: The thesis finds a misalignment between university success frameworks and productisation of research. Many research labs and universities prioritise the academic novelty for degree requirements over the practical utility of research, resulting in innovations that are academically significant but lack real-world application. 
5. Career and Financial Disparity: Researchers often face significant opportunity costs, with corporate jobs offering higher financial incentives compared to academic research roles. This disparity discourages many from pursuing the productisation of their work, further widening the gap. 
6. Proposed Productisation Framework: Based on the findings, the thesis proposes a comprehensive productisation flow model tailored to the Indian context, integrating researchers as central players and aligning the Triple Helix Framework for better government-industry-academia collaboration. This framework highlights specific interventions required at various stages of the research translation process to enhance its market applicability. 

Research methods used for this thesis vary across levels of findings. Our work starts with literature review to understand gaps with existing research that neglects the importance of ‘researchers’ as an active stakeholder in the lab to land journey. This thesis highlights a productisation framework for translation of research from the deep-tech Computer Science domain – marking researchers as active stakeholders. Empirical research methods were deployed to identify high-level blockers and enablers in the productisation flow. We conducted semi-structured interviews with researchers, professors and TTOs (Technology Transfer Officer) to narrow down a list of productisation funnels to identify various stages where research gets stuck during its course of productisation today. The key outcomes of the research work presented in this thesis are its contribution to – scholarship, policy making and practice by highlighting the reasons for lack of productisation from a researcher’s point of view and its overall impact on the productisation flow of computer science research.

July 2025