Should VCs Be Investing In Nano?

from the not-your-typical-investment dept

There have been so many articles about nanotechnology being the next big thing, that suddenly companies that used to be doing "chemistry" are suddenly adding the prefix "nano" to whatever they do. VCs are apparently swarming around this small "next big thing". However, it's not clear if nanotechnology is the right thing for venture backing. Most of the really advanced work is apparently done in large corporate R&D labs that a new startup is unlikely to be able to match. If, somehow, they can come up with something new and useful, then they're probably just going to sell out to those research labs, rather than go public. There's also the question of time horizons. VCs who have become used to rushing out dot coms don't want to hear about a decade or so of research that needs to be done before anyone even knows if something is possible. So, for now, perhaps nanotech isn't such a hot investment. In fact, despite the "buzz", only $42 million out of the $5.6 billion invested by VCs last quarter went into nano companies.

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