The founder of the Axxus Institute evaluates the relationship between entrepreneurial alumni and Unicamp as a competitive advantage
The alliance between technology and specialized knowledge was one of the Axxus Institute's strategies to transform itself, from Unicamp's Technology-Based Business Incubator (Incamp), into a company with international permeability. Since 2019, it has maintained a base in the Unicamp Scientific and Technological Park, remaining integrated into the University's ecosystem.
Its focus is the application of business and scientific research to improve products, processes, systems and businesses. Its founder, Rodnei Domingues, explains that this research provides greater knowledge about markets, companies or services, reducing costs and bringing interested parties closer together. Such information tracking can guide the decisions of large companies in the automotive and construction sectors, for example. “When the industry doesn’t know how to apply artificial intelligence, or how to use biotechnology or the internet of things, we carry out a study and present a suitable model for the company”, he explains.
Field research is carried out on a platform for smartphones and tablets that allows audio and video recording of the interviewee, ensuring efficient information tracking and low operational costs. “The Axxus Institute’s difference is its capillarity. We have a vast database and more than 8 thousand specialized consultants in Brazil. We mobilize these people quickly and at a very low cost,” he says.
Domingues' relationship with Unicamp is old. Specialist in business management from the Institute of Economics (IE), the businessman has remained close to the University since the beginning of the 1990s. While working in the private sector, he helped to develop courses such as Environmental Engineering at the Faculty of Civil Engineering, Architecture and Urbanism at Unicamp (FEC).
In 2015, the Axxus Institute project was approved in the Incamp notice. During the incubation period, the relationship with the University expanded with the support of the Inova Unicamp Innovation Agency. In 2019, Axxus became a graduated company – when the business is ready to explore the market – but chose to remain in the Unicamp Scientific and Technological Park.
“The proximity to Unicamp is a competitive advantage. While it was incubated, interacting with other people and companies helped a lot. The exchange of information and the sharing of difficulties and solutions are fundamental.” In addition to the business relationship network promoted by the Unicamp ecosystem, the events held by the Innovation Agency, according to him, “contribute to the growth of companies, with the exchange of experiences and sharing of success stories”.
Internationalization of the company
With the growth of activities, the Axxus Institute expanded to the foreign market, starting to operate in countries in Europe, Asia and Latin America, carrying out research for Brazilian companies interested in the international market and for large foreign companies interested in Brazil. “We opened units in New York and Estonia, a digital residence that allows greater interaction with companies in the European common market”, he explains. This capillarity allows extensive studies on the international market for Brazilian companies that wish to export or make better use of markets and products. “We have already worked in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Italy, France, Russia, China, Japan, Argentina, Peru, Chile, among other countries. We carried out extensive studies, meeting the needs of Brazilian companies interested in expanding their business in the international market”, he concludes.
Unicamp ecosystem
This article is part of the series of reports produced by Inova about companies that make up the Unicamp ecosystem. Unicamp's daughter companies are considered to be ventures founded by people with some connection with the University, such as students, former students, teachers, employees or former employees, in addition to companies incubated at Incamp or created using technology developed at the University. , the so-called spin-offs.
Inova Unicamp has free registration open to map new companies in its ecosystem. It opens up the opportunity for the company to integrate into the University's entrepreneurial ecosystem. Access here: https://www.inova.unicamp.br/cadastro-filhas/
This report was originally published on the Innova Unicamp.
