Name: Cognicity

Year Founded: 1998

Industry: Software

Revenue Generated for University: $439.30

Summary: Cognicity did not make it. It went bankrupt in 2001. But there was a time when its client list included such powerful names as Warner Bros. and the band Green Day.

But Ahmed Tewfik – one of three University professors that founded the company – said the company got into the market too late.

The company sold University-designed software to track and protect music and video on the Internet. They would sell the results to marketers or record companies that wanted to track pirated music traded online.

Even though the company died, Tewfik said it was worth it.

“I’d definitely do something like this again,” the computer science professor said. “There are issues that if you’re working in an academic field you’ll never come across Ö We’ve all learned from the experience.”