diversity
Blog
The real-world effect of diversity of
inventors in Biomedicine

The real-world effect of diversity of inventors in Biomedicine

Over the years studies have shown that more patents are awarded to men than women. Although the gender gap is narrowing it has been reported that only 16.2% of biomedical patents are held by women. Some studies on this topic claim that health and medicine-related innovations more often address men’s health and our society could be missing out on important medications, devices, and technologies that could benefit women’s health. Recent studies highlight the importance of diversity of inventors and the impact this has on the development of diverse innovative solutions that would benefit society as a whole.

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OrbitX
Blog
Spaceflight company, OrbitX, joins the LOT network

Spaceflight company, OrbitX, joins the LOT network

The Philippines’ first commercial spaceflight company, Orbital Exploration Technologies (or OrbitX) is developing the country’s first suborbital launch vehicles; powered by renewable, low-fuel made from waste plastics. The space travel start-up is aiming to launch their first rockets between 2023 and 2024.

The start-up was founded by Dexter Baño Jr. in 2019. The same year that Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte signed into law the Philippine Space Act, which has paved the way for the setting up of a new Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA).

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EA
Blog
EA Patent Pledge: making
accessibility patents free to use

In a bid to make video games more inclusive to people with disabilities, Electronic Arts (EA) has announced a Patent Pledge. The Pledge will give competitors and developers free access to its accessibility-related patents and technology without fear of being sued for infringement. Around 15% of the global population have a disability, making this decision by EA a welcome move to make video games more accessible to all.

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commerce business awards
Blog
Minesoft wins big at Regional
Chamber of Commerce Business
Awards

Minesoft wins big at the Regional Chamber of Commerce Business Awards

The Minesoft team were thrilled to win the awards for Customer Service and Digital Marketing at the recent Richmond Chamber of Commerce Business Awards.

The annual business awards organised by the Richmond Chamber of Commerce – one of the accredited nationwide British Chambers of Commerce – are a recognition and celebration of regional business success.

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new innovation strategy
Blog
The UK’s new Innovation Strategy and the importance of patents

In July this year, the UK Government laid out its new Innovation Strategy. In the Innovation Strategy: Leading the future by creating builds on the Plan for Growth, the Government opens up a conversation with businesses on how to make the UK a global hub for innovation by 2035. Although there are some important initiatives that will have a positive impact on R&D, there are also some issues that need to be addressed. Most importantly, the lack of education around the necessity to protect intellectual property via patents.

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shell
Blog
Shell Phones: Nature Inspiring
Innovation

Smartphones are now a huge part of modern life, but with the screens currently made from glass, these are easily broken. When this happens, you are often faced with the dilemma: do you pay a fortune to replace it or make do with peering through the broken glass? A team of Bioengineers at McGill University in Canada may have found a potential solution, looking to nature and the humble mollusc shell.

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Blog
Carbon capture technology:
A solution to climate change?

Carbon capture technology: A solution to climate change?

Climate change and how to achieve net zero as quickly as possible is an issue dominating the planet. Many initiatives to reduce emissions are already in place. However, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reducing emissions alone is not enough to achieve the ambitions of the Paris Agreement and limit future temperature increases to 1.5 degrees. It is also necessary to install technologies capable of removing carbon emissions from the atmosphere. Carbon capture technologies such as Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) and Direct Air Capture (DAC) may be able to do exactly that.

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DABUS
Blog
DABUS accepted as first AI inventor

DABUS Accepted As First AI Inventor

In June, South African IP officials made the landmark decision to award a patent naming artificial intelligence DABUS as the inventor. Australia’s Federal Court shortly followed suit setting the historic precedent that AI systems can be legally recognised as the inventor in patent applications. With other international jurisdictions rejecting the patent, these controversial decisions sparked a debate across the globe over how AI fits into the fundamental requirements of IP law.

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Blog
Reinventing Pacemakers:
The Battery-less Pacemaker
Cardiac pacemakers have seen a huge success in extending many lives. However, like The Economist pointed out in their article, the design of these lifesaving devices barely evolved since their invention in the late 1950s. Although patients rely on pacemakers to live a healthy life, their battery does not last forever. To solve the problem surrounding the device’s power supply, researchers worldwide are trying to conceive a battery-less pacemaker. And it appears that Yi Zhiran along with his team from Shanghai Jiao Tong University may have succeeded.

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Brazilian
Blog
Brazilian pharmaceutical patents
no longer subject to ANVISA’s
prior approval

Brazilian pharmaceutical patents no longer subject to ANVISA’s prior approval

Back in March this year, the Brazilian Federal Government issued the Provisional Measure No. 1,040/2021. Their aim is to improve the business environment in Brazil and elevate the country’s position in the World Bank’s “Doing Business” ranking. President Bolsonaro has now sanctioned this measure and the corresponding Law No 14.195 entered into force on August 26th, 2021. More…