The recurring two-sided market failure
Many platforms make it easy for universities to list technologies, then leave SMEs to search and interpret them alone. Supply grows while demand quality and feedback remain weak.
A demand-led model captures real business problems first, invites relevant research to respond, and tracks progress from introduction through pilot and agreement.
What makes a need match-ready
A quality need includes the intended business outcome, production constraints, team capability, pilot budget and acceptable rights model.
The best intake flow does not ask everything at once. It progressively helps an SME structure the problem using its own operating context.