35th Expert Session: Invention Harvesting - Recognize IP, Create Value

For research-driven start-ups, the most valuable asset often lies not in the product or the team, but in the intellectual property on which both are built. Patentable ideas emerge from everyday research and development, yet they frequently go unrecognized, and an invention protected too late can lose much of its value.

In this Expert Session, Dr. Markus Zoller, German and European Patent Attorney and Partner at WSL Patentanwälte, explores how intellectual property can be identified at an early stage and transformed into lasting value. Drawing on his scientific background in biotechnology and immunology and his extensive experience advising companies, research institutions and start-ups in the life sciences, pharmaceuticals and medical technology, he will explain when an idea becomes a patentable invention, and how technical innovations can be systematically identified, assessed and strategically protected. Using practical examples, he will outline the fundamentals of patent protection, the requirements for patentability and the decisive role of timing.He will also show how a strong IP position can become a valuable business asset that creates a competitive advantage, attracts investors and supports a start-up’s long-term success.

Whether you are already working with a promising research result or are just beginning to think about an IP strategy, this session offers practical guidance on protecting your innovations and using them to build your venture.

This session is opened up to all six Bavarian university medicine sites as part of UMB Ventures, the joint start-up incubation program of Universitätsmedizin Bayern e.V.