Understanding R&D Grant Funding for Open Innovation:
Open Innovation refers to the collaborative process between large corporations facing specific challenges and innovative SMEs capable of developing solutions.
There is a growing number of R&D grant funding opportunities aimed at promoting open innovation, facilitated by organizations like Innovate UK and Horizon Europe.
Insights from a Grant Writer:
“Entering into a collaboration as an SME can be daunting, given the discrepancies in company size, influence and experience. Typically, a neutral third party involved in Open Innovation is engaged as a ‘mediator’ to facilitate the relationship.
The mediator serves as the primary point of contact for Intellectual Property (IP) matters. The mediator will help decide who owns the existing IP brought into the project by both parties, as well as any IP generated during the Open Innovation project.
You will need to define existing IP from both parties and potential IP to be generated in the grant application. Setting these boundaries forms the foundation for the grant/collaboration agreement. The collaboration agreement sets out the terms by which IP is partitioned during the project and is signed in advance. You should seek advice from a patent attorney for further guidance on navigating these tricky waters.”
Insights from a Patent Attorney:
“Collaborating with large corporations can offer significant benefits, as they may provide access to resources and markets that SMEs lack. However, SMEs often possess greater agility in developing new IPs, giving them a commercial edge.
To safeguard your commercial interests during and after the project, it’s crucial to ensure the existence of suitable IP rights and clearly define in the collaboration agreement how existing IP will be utilized by all parties, as well as the ownership and commercialization of potential IP. Overlooking these IP considerations risks undermining your commercial position in any collaboration.”
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