The Only Question That Matters By Joshua Goldberg, Co-Managing Partner  The Decision Framework Behind Every Investment At the end of every investment conversation…everything reduces to one question: “Can this company stay ahead long enough to matter?” Why This Question Exists Markets do not reward innovation. They reward controlled advantage. Because without the barriers created by [...]

By Howard W. Kline As June 7th (“6/7 Day”) approaches, teachers across the U.S. are surely relieved it falls on a Sunday this year. For trademark attorneys, however, “67,” “six-seven,” and other viral phrases raise a different question: Can you actually claim exclusive rights in something everyone is saying?  A lot of people seem to [...]

The Parts You Should Never Patent By Joshua Goldberg, Co-Managing Partner  Why Disclosure Can Quietly Destroy Advantage The most valuable part of your business…might be the part no one ever sees. The Default Instinct When companies create something valuable, the instinct is to protect it. In most cases, that means filing a patent application. But [...]

Where Investors Actually Look By Joshua Goldberg, Co-Managing Partner  Why Your Innovation Matters Less Than Your Decay Rate Investors rarely say this directly; they are not evaluating your innovation. They are evaluating your decay rate. What Is “Decay Rate”? Decay rate is the speed at which your competitive advantage disappears. Not whether your technology works. [...]

The Three Layers of Control By Joshua Goldberg, Co-Managing Partner  What Actually Determines Whether You Can Defend What You Have Built This is where the game becomes strategic. Because not all protection is equal. And not all protection should be visible. Most companies approach intellectual property as a single decision: Patent or do not patent. [...]

The Illusion of Protection By Joshua Goldberg, Co-Managing Partner  Why Filing Is Not the Same as Defending Most founders believe they have solved the problem once they “file something.” A patent application. A PVP certificate. A provisional filing. There is a sense of relief that comes with it. As if protection has been established. As [...]

The Day You Stop Being a Plant Startup By Joshua Goldberg, Co-Managing Partner  You do not realize it when it happens. There is no announcement. No milestone marker. No internal memo. There is a moment, quiet… almost invisible, when your company stops being a startup… …and becomes a target. It usually happens right after validation. [...]

How Patent Strategy Shapes Funding, Growth, and Exit By Joshua Goldberg, Co-Managing Partner  At every stage of a clean energy company, patents play a different role. And understanding that evolution is critical. Because intellectual property is not static. Its impact changes as the business grows. Early Stage: Signaling Defensibility In the early stages, when revenue [...]

How Clean Energy Startups Turn Patents Into Revenue By Joshua Goldberg, Co-Managing Partner  Patents only create value when they are used. This is where many companies fall short. They invest in intellectual property, secure patents, and then treat them as static assets—something to hold rather than something to leverage. But in clean energy, patents are [...]

Why Patent Quality Matters More Than Quantity By Joshua Goldberg, Co-Managing Partner  More patents do not necessarily mean more value. In many cases, it means the opposite. This is one of the most common misconceptions among clean energy startups. Founders often assume that building a large patent portfolio automatically strengthens their position. On paper, a [...]