Space really is the final frontier, and it is critically important to securing the United States’ national security interests now and into the future. And when it comes to the ecosystem of space and military/commercial dual-use technology innovation, it has to be all hands on deck. And these can’t be just any hands. This must be a top-notch assembly of the best and brightest, whose team goal is to create forward-thinking ideas that can be cultivated into a tangible reality.
So when attorneys at Fogel & Potamianos LLP (partners Jerome Fogel and Constantine Potamianos, alongside intellectual property expert Robert Kramer) were asked to take part in the Innovate to Accelerate (I2A) webinar series, they were honored to do so, and were proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with SpaceWERX during the I2A Expo Day, deeply humbled by the chance to play a small part in moving critical space technology and our country’s national security interests forward.
To partially explain why this was so exciting, we have to go back a few years to when the Department of the Air Force announced their AFWERX Initiative, an umbrella program that works to bring cutting edge American ingenuity from start-ups and emerging businesses to address the most pressing challenges of the Department of the Air Force.
Within AFWREX, at the bleeding edge of technology, is SpaceWERX, that serves as the innovation arm of the U.S. Space Force. Its goal is to strengthen the U.S. defense industrial base and drive faster technology transition to operational capability in the U.S. Space Force.
Space really is the final frontier, and it is critically important to securing the United States’ national security interests now and into the future. And when it comes to the ecosystem of space and military/commercial dual-use technology innovation, it has to be all hands on deck. And these can’t be just any hands. This must be a top-notch assembly of the best and brightest, whose team goal is to create forward-thinking ideas that can be cultivated into a tangible reality.
So when attorneys at Fogel & Potamianos LLP (partners Jerome Fogel and Constantine Potamianos, alongside intellectual property expert Robert Kramer) were asked to take part in the Innovate to Accelerate (I2A) webinar series, they were honored to do so, and were proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with SpaceWERX during the I2A Expo Day, deeply humbled by the chance to play a small part in moving critical space technology and our country’s national security interests forward.
To partially explain why this was so exciting, we have to go back a few years to when the Department of the Air Force announced their AFWERX Initiative, an umbrella program that works to bring cutting edge American ingenuity from start-ups and emerging businesses to address the most pressing challenges of the Department of the Air Force.
But navigating this world can be confusing, especially for novel entrepreneurs. Enter Disruptive Technology Index (DTI), a non-profit whose passion is to help bridge the gap between the U.S. government’s investment in the Space Force (and in the New Space Economy in general) and the development of commercial startups.
Together, with SpaceWERX, DTI has created their flagship program – Innovate to Accelerate (I2A) – to help companies scale and thrive in the New Space Economy, in both the commercial sector as well as the national security sector. The goal of DTI’s Expo Day (held at their new hub, The BR-DGE, in El Sugundo, California, the aerospace capital of the world) is to shine a light on recent participants of the SpaceWERX Challenge. There, companies can share pitches and ask questions of colleagues, government stakeholders, investors and journalists.
As part of the Innovate to Accelerate (I2A) program, DTI assembled a five-star team to help address some of the critical issues for these companies, and Fogel and Potamianos LLP were thrilled to be included.
F&P are no strangers to advising clients on how to protect their companies and intellectual property. In fact, they’re one of the most sought-after firms in California when it comes to corporate organization, financing, business commercialization and growth, intellectual property and patents, successful exits, and more. In the webinar, they were able to answer questions about navigating venture capital, protecting intellectual property, collaborating in government partnerships, and finding the most helpful legal advice for emerging companies in the New Space Economy.
For example, Robert Kramer who led the session Top 5 Things Not to Do with Intellectual Property stresses the importance of looking at the “Big Picture” for companies and inventors to protect themselves in terms of patents, trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets. Jerome, who led the session VCs: The Good, The Bad & The Ugly, as well as Constantine who led the session Exit Strategy: Achieving Escape Velocity, discuss the value of having a strong legal team for an emerging company to rely on, no matter how big or small the company.
Constantine also adds, “The critical thing is asking: is there a personality fit? When you’re talking to people in your law firm about what you’re doing, do their eyes glaze over or do they get excited? Do they want to help achieve your goals? Are they accessible and easy to deal with?”
The team ended the webinar session by expressing pure admiration for the DTI/SpaceWERX mission. Constantine shares, “Thank you for what you’re doing. What’s going on with AFWERX and SpaceWERX is super important. And what you’re doing is taking us into the next century. We are super grateful to help play a tiny part in this.”
