Securing the Future: IP Protection Strategies for AI-Driven Enterprises

Description
We are bringing together leading legal experts from Womble Bond Dickinson to provide a comprehensive technical and legal briefing on the evolving intellectual property landscape in the age of AI. As AI models increasingly influence patentability, copyright, and trade secret integrity, understanding these regulatory frameworks is critical.
Join us for an evening of expert analysis and discussion on how to navigate the emerging legal complexities of AI-integrated innovation.

Agenda
18:00 Doors open
18:30 - 19:00 Update on AI and U.S. IP Law: Recent Developments (Chris Mammen)
19:00 - 19:30 Trade Secret Protection and AI: Opportunities and Risks (Steve Levitan)
19:30 - 20:00 Patent Challenges With AI in the Life Sciences (Susan Krumplitsch)
20:00 - 21:00 Networking
21:00 Doors close
Speakers
Talk 1 - Update on AI and U.S. IP Law: Recent Developments
Speaker: Chris Mammen (Managing Partner, Womble Bond Dickinson)
Abstract: The past couple of years have ushered in a dizzying array of new issues for intellectual property law, as AI establishes an ever-firmer foothold in our culture and continuously improves. Dr. Christian Mammen will provide an overview of the current issues in copyright, patent, and right-of-publicity law, as well as what factors will most likely impact what comes next.
Bio: Dr Chris Mammen is the San Francisco Office Managing Partner at Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP. Chris is a leading Intellectual Property (IP) lawyer and represents a wide variety of companies on technology and IP issues, including AI. He has litigated numerous AI-related patent and copyright cases over the past ten years. Chris is also a co-founder of Womble’s AI practice and has spoken and written widely on AI, legal ethics, and law practice.
In 2024, while on sabbatical at Oxford, he led a multidisciplinary team in writing a white paper titled “Creativity, Artificial Intelligence, and the Requirement of Human Authors and Inventors in Copyright and Patent Law”.
Chris has received international recognition for his work in AI and IP, lecturing in the U.S., the U.K, Japan, and Korea, and has been quoted by outlets including Wired, VICE, Reuters, Bloomberg, The Guardian, and The Financial Times. His published works include "AI as Inventor" in The Cambridge Handbook of Artificial Intelligence (2022).
Talk 2 - Trade Secret Protection and AI: Opportunities and Risks
Speaker: Steve Levitan (IP Litigation Partner, Womble Bond Dickinson)
Abstract: In addition to the compelling issues raised by copyright, patent, and publicity law, the ascendance of AI has raised some important issues in trade secret law as well. For example, can trade secret laws protect AI-generated inventions? What are the risks to the protection of pre-existing trade secrets posed by AI, and how can those risks be mitigated? Can AI assist in identifying pre-existing trade secrets?
Bio: Steve Levitan was named a Top Trade Secrets Lawyer by the Daily Journal for 5 consecutive years. Over his 30+ year career, he has led numerous intellectual property lawsuits for national and international clients involved in a wide spectrum of technologies, with a primary focus over the last decade on trade secret disputes. He has first chaired trials and argued appeals, obtaining successful results in civil actions before U.S. federal district courts, California state courts, the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), and the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and American Arbitration Association (AAA) arbitration tribunals.
Mr. Levitan further acts as a go-to counselor for his clients on trade secret issues, including, for example: directing internal corporate investigations, navigating particular employee mobility situations, advising on corporate policies and best practices for protection of trade secrets and confidential information, conducting employee training, preparing comparative analyses of different trade secret enforcement regimes, recommending independent development (including “clean room”) guidelines, and contributing to M&A due diligence of trade secret matters. He has also teamed up with white-collar lawyers in defense of criminal trade secret theft prosecutions and subpoenas.
Talk 3 - Patent Challenges With AI in the Life Sciences
Speaker: Susan Krumplitsch (Life Science IP Litigation Partner, Womble Bond Dickinson)
Abstract: AI adoption across the biotech, medtech, and medical device sectors has transformed the speed of discovery and expanded the scope of products and therapies being brought to market. As AI increasingly drives innovation, issues regarding patentability and data ownership play a growing role in how these scientific breakthroughs are protected, commercialized, and delivered to patients.
Bio: Susan Krumplitsch is a seasoned intellectual property litigator representing life sciences companies in high-stakes patent and trade secret disputes. She advises clients across the biotechnology, pharmaceutical, and medical device sectors, regularly appearing in federal courts nationwide and before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in post-grant review proceedings.
Organizers
Ilya Kulyatin is an entrepreneur with work and academic experience in the US, Netherlands, Singapore, UK, and Japan. He holds a BA in Economics, an MA in Finance, and an MSc in Machine Learning. He's a 3x founder, now helping Japan grow the local AI ecosystem through a not-for-profit community, Tokyo AI (TAI), while building an AI-native system integrator and solutions provider, Foundry Labs株式会社.
Julia Harvey is a GTM enablement strategist and facilitator with leadership experience across APAC, Europe, and the US, specializing in cybersecurity and startup ecosystem growth.
Supporters
Tokyo AI ( TAI) is the biggest AI community in Japan, with 4,000+ members mainly based in Tokyo (engineers, researchers, investors, product managers, and corporate innovation managers).
Global Hands-On VC (GHOVC) is a venture capital firm established in 2020 by a team of five experienced entrepreneurs, two Japanese and three Americans, to provide hands-on support for Japanese technology startups aiming for global expansion. The firm focuses on investing in deep tech startups, leveraging the founders’ operational and investment expertise to guide portfolio companies in areas like talent acquisition, market entry, and fundraising. GHOVC differentiates itself by offering active, mentorship-driven support similar to U.S. venture capital models, with the goal of nurturing Japanese startups into global unicorns.
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