IBM Corp, Hewlett-Packard Co, Intel and rivals are trying to rush new products out sooner, especially as they scrounge for hot devices to lure customers back to stores during an economic slump.
They've got to balance such speedy developments with lab work on projects that won't come to light for years. The first research reports from these centers won't be complete for at least a year, analysts said, and it's difficult to judge their success until then.
"This is not about getting the next-generation Pentium processor out on time," Chesbrough said. "This is a project with a longer fuse."
"It's not just Intel getting a look at the cool stuff, but a shot at commercializing it a little faster," said Richard Doherty, research director at Envisioneering Group, a technology-assessment and market-research firm.
In the University of Washington lab, engineers are crafting tools that would allow scientists to automatically record measurements and results without typing them into a computer.
Three blocks from campus, Intel workers can install prototypes in the biology department and see the results.
"We're working on things that are good for the company, but on other side, it's nice because it's not necessarily things that are going to be direct Intel products," said Gaetano Borriello, the lab's director.
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