Office Hour with Stephen Hou: Patent Strategy for Startups [SIT SV Hub Member Only]

​Patent Strategy for Startups (Office Hour)

​​💡 About the Session

​Join us for an in-depth session on patent strategy for startups, designed to help founders build and protect their intellectual property as they scale in competitive global markets.

​In this session, Stephen M. Hou will share practical insights on how startups can develop an effective patent strategy—from early-stage considerations to navigating cross-border IP challenges between the U.S. and Taiwan.

​Drawing from his experience advising startups and technology companies, Stephen will walk through key concepts, common pitfalls, and strategic approaches to help founders make informed decisions around intellectual property.

​This session will begin with a ~45-minute seminar presentation, followed by an interactive Q&A session, where participating startups can ask questions and engage directly in discussion.

​​🗓️ Date & Time

​​May 14, 2026 (Thursday), 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM (Pacific Time)

​​📍 Location

​​Hybrid Event

• ​​Onsite:

  • ​​Startup Island TAIWAN – Silicon Valley Hub

  • ​​299 California Ave STE 300, Palo Alto, CA 94306

• ​​Online:

  • ​​Google Meet (link will be provided after registration)

​​​⚠️ This is a members-only event for SIT SV Hub startups.

​​🧭 Agenda

• ​2:00 – 2:45 PM | Seminar: Patent Strategy for Startups

• ​2:45 – 4:00 PM | Group Office Hour (Q&A + Discussion)

​🧩 Who should attend

​This session is designed for:

• ​Early- to growth-stage startup founders

• ​Teams building technology-driven products

• ​Founders expanding across the U.S. and Taiwan markets

​​👤 Advisor

​​Stephen Hou

​​Stephen Hou is the Vice President & COO of the American Patent Agency. He has practiced patent prosecution for law firms in Boston and San Francisco, where he counsels tech startups on patent portfolio development, patent drafting, and patent prosecution. He has taught seminars on patent law and strategy at Cornell University, Harvard Medical School, the London School of Economics, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), New York University, and the Wharton School, as well as at premier universities in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Taiwan.

​​​Stephen graduated Phi Beta Kappa with four undergraduate and graduate degrees in Physics and Electrical Engineering (EE), all from MIT, where he conducted master's and doctoral research in microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) and taught courses in digital signal processing. He earned the President Paul E. Gray Award for Excellence in Research and the Goodwin Medal, MIT's highest honor for excellence in teaching by a graduate student. Stephen received his law degree from the New York University School of Law, where he was a Dean's Award Scholar and an InSITE Fellow, advising startup companies and venture capitalists on patents, technology, and entrepreneurship. He is an alumnus of the International Patent Drafting Training Program hosted by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), a United Nations (UN) agency based in Geneva, Switzerland.