Developing a winning IP strategy is not difficult!!
You can start just by asking yourself 3 questions:
Background: Last week, I explained why developing a winning IP strategy requires AI startups and SMEs to look inward.
Because each AI business is unique, and your IP strategy must SUIT your business.
To start your IP strategy, look inward and ask yourself this:
- What are your key business goals? What differentiates you from competitors?
These are the things that an IP strategy can help with. Because an IP strategy is just a part of your overall business strategy. It helps optimize how you use your IP to achieve or enhance those business objectives. - Which of your IP supports these goals and differentiators?
This is brainstorming pure and simple. IP is stuff like ideas, information, code, models, tools, solution approaches, and data that sets your company apart. The highest impact IP is the stuff that feeds your differentiators or helps drive your objectives.
Hint: your high-impact IP is not necessarily high-tech, cool or amazing AI. This is one of the biggest misconceptions people have about IP. High-impact IP can be anything that plays an important role. Be careful not to have your Nobel Prize blinders on here. - How can you improve the effectiveness of that high-impact IP?
Do you own your high-impact IP? Ownership helps ensure you can use it however you wish, and is crucial to building value in your company.
Is your high-impact IP adequately protected? If you’re keeping it secret, how exactly are you doing that? If it will become exposed to customers or competitors in use, should you consider a patent?
How can you leverage your high-impact IP to get more from it? If it plays a central role in your product or business, will a patent help crystallize value for your company, or help attract investors?
Building your winning IP strategy is quintessentially an iterative process. Baby steps. Just do it. Like riding a 🚲.
The more you think about your IP, the more naturally it will become part of your business planning.
And once you develop this IP self-awareness, you’ll be way ahead of the pack.
