How Investors Evaluate Intellectual Property Strategy in AgTech By Joshua Goldberg, Co-Managing Partner  In practice, the most effective intellectual property strategies often combine patents and trade secrets. Hybrid approaches allow companies to capture the advantages of both forms of protection. This is particularly true for AgTech, as discussed across this series of articles. Investors conducting [...]

Trade Secrets in AgTech: Opportunities and Risks By Joshua Goldberg, Co-Managing Partner  Trade secrets represent a different approach to intellectual property protection. Instead of providing exclusivity through government-granted rights, trade secrets protect confidential information that derives value from remaining undisclosed. Unlike patents, trade secrets can theoretically last indefinitely provided confidentiality is maintained. Advantages of Trade [...]

The Risks and Limitations of Patent Strategy in AgTech By Joshua Goldberg, Co-Managing Partner  While patents can provide powerful protection, they also introduce several strategic challenges—particularly in agriculture. One challenge is disclosure. Patent applications require innovators to publicly describe how their technology works. This information can sometimes help competitors design alternative solutions that avoid infringing [...]

Why Patents Still Matter to AgTech Investors By Joshua Goldberg, Co-Managing Partner  Patents remain the most recognized form of intellectual property protection. They provide legally enforceable exclusivity for up to twenty years and can create significant barriers to market entry. In many industries, patents are the primary mechanism used to protect technological innovation. For investors [...]

Why Intellectual Property Strategy Is Uniquely Complex in Agriculture By Joshua Goldberg, Co-Managing Partner  Intellectual property strategy in agriculture is more complicated than in most other technology sectors. Three structural characteristics make protecting agricultural innovation particularly challenging. Biological and Environmental Variability Unlike software or hardware products that operate in controlled environments, agricultural technologies must function [...]

Why Intellectual Property Strategy Now Determines AgTech Valuation By Joshua Goldberg, Co-Managing Partner  Agriculture is entering one of the most innovation-driven periods in its history. Global population growth, climate volatility, emerging crop diseases, and resistant pests are forcing the development of entirely new agricultural technologies. At the same time, pressure is mounting to maintain animal [...]