Stanford Entrepreneurship Videos

Attorney and Stanford lecturer Jeffrey Schox breaks down the total cost and time for obtaining a U.S. patent and discusses the art of crafting a description broad enough to ensure the best claim protection, but also narrow enough to distinguish an invention from anything previously patented. Schox also explains the value of submitting a provisional application and what it involves.

Attorney Jeffrey Schox, who specializes in patent law for startups, shares two methods for determining when a business should apply for a patent: by rewarding engineers within a company who self-report and file themselves, or by a more top-down approach where chief executives are invited to first identify what’s most important to the company, what’s the budget, and then decide what to patent.

Patent attorney Jeffrey Schox talks about when the best times are to submit provisional applications in advance of filing for a full patent, mapping those points along a general technology-development curve. He describes the critical phase for obtaining a full patent and advises startups to begin the process early, as well as to re-file provisional applications to prevent them from lapsing.

Patent attorney Jeffrey Schox addresses the most common patent-related questions investors have and what infringement means. He discusses how business licensing agreements allow complex products that contain plenty of patented inventions to be built and sold. Schox is also a lecturer at Stanford who teaches courses at the university’s engineering and law schools.

Entrepreneurs in need of a patent attorney must choose someone who knows the art of describing an invention in a way that distinguishes it as novel from both past and future inventions, according to Jeffrey Schox, a patent attorney who works exclusively with startups. Knowing the unique funding and technology-development curves of startup companies is also critical, according to Schox, who also lectures on the subject at Stanford University.

Design-thinking expert Bernard Roth describes an approach for opening up the solution space for problems that defy solutions. After identifying the problem, determine what the solution to that problem will do for you, and then make that the question you must answer, advises Roth, academic director of the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design at Stanford (d.school).

Bernard Roth, author of "The Achievement Habit: Stop Wishing, Start Doing, and Take Command of Your Life," explains how the reasons we give when we fail are just excuses. The real failure is in not deeming enough importance to the everyday tasks that confront us, the Stanford engineering professor says. Once we are honest about that, behavior change will follow.

The Stanford d.school's Bernard Roth, author of "The Achievement Habit," refutes an oft-quoted line by Yoda in the "Star Wars" movie series, "Do. Or do not. There is no try." Roth says there is: "There's really nothing wrong with trying to do something, and there's certainly nothing wrong with doing it. The problem is when you think they're the same thing."

Derek Belch, co-founder and CEO of STRIVR Labs, a startup that uses virtual reality to train athletes, describes the passion necessary for entrepreneurship and the features that give his business a competitive edge in a rising-tide industry. The former Stanford football player is candid about the personal sacrifices entailed in putting your all into your venture.

Derek Belch, co-founder and CEO of STRIVR Labs, expresses "cautious optimism" about virtual reality. Despite VR's popularity, the former Stanford football assistant coach and kicker says there are both good and bad use cases. While a movie director can focus audience attention, Belch says VR firms haven't yet mastered how to guide users through a 360-degree experience.

STRIVR Labs Co-Founder and CEO Derek Belch explains how he went from the football field to starting a business. He recounts how he launched his startup in January 2015 with a small pool of funds from core backers and began presenting his idea for using virtual reality to train athletes to professional and college teams around the country. Belch also discusses discovering new revenue streams.

"If you want to start something, you have to be prepared to sacrifice," says Derek Belch, co-founder and CEO of STRIVR Labs. He describes how those at his startup are committed to their product's success, not high pay. Belch also talks about how a business's ability to bring in revenue is a better measure of its success than how much investor money it has raised.

STRIVR Labs CEO Derek Belch stresses the importance of paying attention to the little details that make all the difference to customers and a company's reputation. Belch, who co-founded the startup that uses virtual reality to train athletes, also discusses the challenges to collaborating and decision-making that come with having a dispersed workforce.

Derek Belch, co-founder and CEO of STRIVR Labs, explains how clear direction and communication counters human tendency toward hesitation and inertia. He also describes his openness with employees about all aspects of the business and how such transparency builds trust and a sense of belonging among those who work from a distance.

Entrepreneur Minnie Ingersoll talks about how a computer-science degree, an MBA and 11 years at Google prepared her to co-found the online auto marketplace Shift. Calling her startup "a car company with Google DNA," Ingersoll offers insights on opportunity recognition, product management, career-life balance and the importance of traits like humility and patience.