What terms should be better to set when creating a Startup with your PhD supervisor? What terms should be better to set when creating a Startup with your PhD supervisor?
I had the PhD project idea before starting the PhD and working on it for some years. Now my PhD research looks promising for commercial use and I am thinking to create a startup. I recognize the prestige of my PhD supervisor and he is willing to participate in the startup.
Which are considered fair terms for both me and the professor for our new startup, based on the fact that i have done all the development (spending countless hours of work the past years) and came up with the project idea, but the professor has the prestigious name to make the startup more credible (and maybe better funded)?
Share equal equity? Have equity based on hours spent on the startup? Something else?
I strongly suggest that you hire a lawyer to get this advice. Failing to do so could lead to a huge amount of conflict later. It is likely that your interests don't completely align with those of your advisor.
I'm not a lawyer so can't help much, but it might be possible to set up a joint meeting with a lawyer and the advisor to work out an equitable arrangement. Your joint venture will need legal advice in any case.
But you also need to consider what a conflict would mean for finishing your degree. Don't put that in jeopardy.