Lausanne, Switzerland – On May 4, Innovation Insights, Global Innovation Forum and Innovation Forum Lausanne organized a breakout panel discussion at UNESCO‘s biennial Tech4Dev conference – a gathering for international development leaders, scientists and entrepreneurs to reflect on how technological innovation can lead to positive social impact. This year, Tech4Dev welcomed more than 500 participants from 70 countries.
The session, entitled “Attention Innovative Start-ups! Practical Advice to Grow your Business Globally” aimed to offer entrepreneurs with guidance as to how they can address certain key challenges that start-ups encounter as their businesses expand and cross borders.
The panel featured four experts from the green tech, industrial biotech, and health sectors:
- Marcelo do Amaral, Chief Executive Officer of Brazil-based start-up, Global Yeast;
- Dimitra Christakou, Managing Director of CambridgeIP and Mentor to Ecomachines Ventures, both in the UK;
- Mukul Kumar, coach for clean tech start-ups in Switzerland;
- and Emil Pot, independent IP Counsel and Co-founder of ActoGenix.
Driven by questions from local startups and audience members, the conversation touched on many subjects, in particular on challenges related to intellectual property management, regulatory compliance and adaptation of offerings for different markets. The panelists emphasized that strategies for intellectual asset management necessarily vary depending on field of technology, key markets, and budget. For instance, in the life sciences and biotech sectors, where IP protection is essential to securing investment and managing investments in R&D, they recommended acquiring patents in as many markets as is affordable, with a focus on their primary markets.
About the Global Innovation Forum
The Global Innovation Forum (GIF) is dedicated to fostering a better understanding of the policy foundations that underpin the ability of startups, researchers, universities, NGOs and companies of all sizes to innovate and engage globally in the digital age. Through public forums, private workshops and online activities, GIF connects innovative business, startup, university and development communities to explore the opportunities and challenges of engaging in the international marketplace and the impact that public policies can have on global innovation. GIF is a project of the National Foreign Trade Council Foundation.