From Corporate Life
The Future of Neurotech: A Fireside Chat
On October 28, 2015, a gathering of the Stanford Biodesign Alumni association, the current Biodesign fellows, and Women in Medtech members, was treated to a delightful fireside chat on the Neuromodulation frontier. The panelists shared a wide array of perspectives first-hand: from entrepreneurs building exciting neurostimulation products, to leaders of publicly traded companies marketing neuromodulation devices and even included the venture capital perspective on the future of this promising field of bioelectronic medicines. Hosted graciously at the T3 Advisors’ office in Palo Alto, this event was a treat for the audience who were entirely engaged in a lively discussion over cocktails.
Even the Patent Office gets a Stimulus Plan (that may benefit your small company)
Just when you thought you had heard the last of Stimulus Plans in the US, think again. The United States Patent Office (USPTO) has initiated its own version of a Stimulus Plan. Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO, David Kappos, announced the pilot program at the Annual Independent Inventors Conference in early November. “The program will accelerate protection for important innovation from independent inventors while reducing our unacceptable backlog,” Kappos said. “Getting these inventions to the marketplace quickly will also help stimulate the economy and create jobs”.
The program is called the Patent Application Backlog Reduction Stimulus Plan and it went into effect on November 27th, 2009 (http://www.uspto.gov/patents/law/notices/74fr62285.pdf). By the recent reports made on https://alpineeng.com, the pilot program is only running until the end of February (unless extended by subsequent notice), it may provide an important strategic tool for small companies, particularly medical device start-up companies. In short, the plan provides small entities (solo inventors, companies having less than 500 employees, and nonprofit organizations) with the opportunity to have one of their patent applications accorded special status for examination in exchange for the abandonment one of their other co-pending applications. Read more
Biodesign Alumni 