Owning Your Advantage: Practical IP Strategies for AI Startups
As AI transforms every industry, intellectual property is becoming critical to startup success.
Join legal experts, investors, and AI founders for a practical discussion on protecting your innovation, including patents, proprietary data and models, AI-generated content, and common IP pitfalls.
Learn what investors look for and how to build a defensible AI business while moving fast.
Speakers
Ayo Roberts
Principal, Harper Court Ventures
Ayo is a biomechanical engineer and medtech investor with over a decade of experience spanning R&D, startup formation, product strategy, and early-stage investing. She evaluates transformative pre-seed technologies emerging from the University of Chicago across AI, life sciences, quantum computing, and energy, with a focus on technical feasibility, clinical impact, and market potential.
Deborah “Debbie” Laughton
Partner, McAndrews, Held & Malloy
Debbie Laughton is an intellectual property attorney focused on patent prosecution, litigation, strategy, transactional work, and portfolio management. She is recognized by Intellectual Asset Management’s (IAM) Patent 1000, the Legal 500 U.S. Elite, and as an Illinois Super Lawyer. She often serves as lead attorney on high-stakes patent disputes, and was part of a team that successfully represented a client before the United States Supreme Court as it reviewed the standard for awarding enhanced patent infringement damages. Debbie advises clients on legal considerations surrounding AI initiatives, including internal AI development and deployment, as well as partnerships with AI technology providers. She was recently recognized by Crain’s Chicago Business as a 2026 Notable Leader in Accounting, Consulting, and Law, and she is a longtime member of the University of Illinois College of Engineering Board of Visitors.
Reza Rooholamini, Ph.D.,
Chief Science, AI, and Innovation Officer, GVP, CCC Intelligent Solutions
Reza Rooholamini serves as chief science and AI officer at CCC Intelligent Solutions, where he brings deep expertise in artificial intelligence, cloud computing and emerging technologies.
Sid Ramesh, MD, MS
Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer, Slideflow Labs
Sid Ramesh is Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of SlideflowLabs and a physician-scientist at the University of Chicago. His work focuses on AI-powered cancer biomarkers for risk stratification and treatment selection, helping hospitals develop and deploy pathology AI in-house.
Moderator
Jeremie Bacon
Adjunct Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship
Senior Advisor to the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation
An investor, entrepreneur, and Adjunct Associate Professor at Chicago Booth who supports AI-driven startups through venture strategy and early-stage investment. He also helps manage partnerships with Microsoft and NVIDIA, connecting high-potential AI founders with infrastructure, mentorship, and national investor networks to accelerate commercialization and company growth.