Intellectual Ventures

Holographic beam-forming antenna startup Pivotal Commware raises $17M from Bill Gates and others

by Alan Boyle on June 16, 2017June 16, 2017 at 10:01 amComment

BELLEVUE, Wash. – Chalk up another score for metamaterials technology: Bellevue-based Pivotal Commware says it’s raised $17 million in Series A funding from Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, Globalstar’s parent company… Read More

Intellectual Ventures’ president and general counsel are both leaving their roles

by Todd Bishop on June 1, 2017June 1, 2017 at 1:47 pm1 Comment

Adriane Brown, the president and chief operating officer of Intellectual Ventures, is stepping down from her executive role at the Bellevue, Wash.-based patent holding and technology company, to be replaced by… Read More

Bill Gates-backed satellite antenna company Kymeta raises $73.5M, total funding nears $200M

by Taylor Soper on April 6, 2017April 7, 2017 at 6:26 amComment

Kymeta has raised its largest investment round to fuel development of the company’s satellite antenna technology. The Redmond, Wash.-based company recently reeled in a $73.5 million round, according to a new… Read More

Wireless energy for drones? Intellectual Ventures beams power with metamaterials

by Alan Boyle on February 1, 2017February 27, 2017 at 11:00 amComment

BELLEVUE, Wash. – Wireless power transmission has been a dream since the days of Nikola Tesla, but Intellectual Ventures is adding a twist to make it so, and make it… Read More

Proposed wireless charging station would make dead batteries ‘a thing of the past’

by Clare McGrane on October 25, 2016January 16, 2017 at 2:16 pm1 Comment

Imagine the living room of the future — AI-controlled heating and cooling systems, VR gear strewn across the floor, and best of all a flat, TV-like wireless charging station that makes… Read More

Podcast

Nathan Myhrvold: If you obsess about what people think of you, you’ll never change the world

by Todd Bishop on October 12, 2016October 12, 2016 at 12:14 pm 2 Comments

Intellectual Ventures CEO Nathan Myhrvold is one of the most controversial figures in the technology industry — a lightning rod for criticism of the patent system thanks to his company’s large… Read More

Podcast

GeekWire Radio: Another big week for Amazon, and inside the world of Nathan Myhrvold

by Todd Bishop on October 7, 2016June 11, 2017 at 8:19 amComment

This week on the GeekWire radio show and podcast: Amazon launches a regional employee bus service, leases a giant new office space in Bellevue, and donates $10 million to help build… Read More

Nathan Myhrvold: Why Intellectual Ventures still believes in the power of patents

by Nat Levy on October 5, 2016October 5, 2016 at 2:50 pm 3 Comments

Some see Nathan Myhrvold as a patent troll. He prefers to think of himself as an invention advocate. The eccentric CEO of Intellectual Ventures addressed a wide range of topics during an… Read More

Live Blog: Intellectual Ventures founder Nathan Myhrvold talks patent trolling, asteroids, and bread at the GeekWire Summit

by Monica Nickelsburg & Nat Levy on October 5, 2016October 5, 2016 at 12:23 pmComment

Nathan Myhrvold is a polarizing figure, to say the least. From patent licensing to dinosaur growth rates to a recent controversy over the search for killer asteroids, the Intellectual Ventures founder and former… Read More

Intellectual Ventures’ Global Good Fund wins ‘Patents for Humanity’ award from USPTO

by Clare McGrane on September 29, 2016September 29, 2016 at 10:24 am1 Comment

When looking for a solution to a tough humanitarian issue, patents are rarely the first thing on anyone’s mind. But the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s Patents for Humanity program is seeking… Read More

Intellectual Ventures’ invention network spins out and reinvents itself as Xinova

by Alan Boyle on September 28, 2016October 6, 2016 at 11:29 am1 Comment

There’s a “new, new” name in the invention business: Xinova, a company that’s been spun out from Intellectual Ventures and is now in the midst of reinventing itself. Xinova used… Read More

Photos

Inside the invention factory: Get a peek at Intellectual Ventures’ lab

by Alan Boyle on September 11, 2016September 11, 2016 at 7:41 pm 5 Comments

BELLEVUE, Wash. – It’s tough enough to move a laboratory to new digs, but when you add in a world-class kitchen and a state-of-the-art machine shop, you get a sense of… Read More

Tech Moves: Marc Nager leaving Techstars role; Mona Locke departs Intellectual Ventures; and more

by Kurt Schlosser on July 11, 2016July 15, 2016 at 4:26 pm1 Comment

— Telluride Foundation, the network with a goal of improving the quality of life for those who live, work and visit the Colorado town, has snagged Techstars vet Marc Nager for… Read More

Intellectual Ventures spinoff Sublime Technologies raises cash for new consumer products venture

by Taylor Soper on January 14, 2016January 14, 2016 at 10:59 amComment

Sublime Technologies is the latest spinoff to come out of the Invention Development Fund (IDF) at Bellevue-based Intellectual Ventures (IV), the patent holding firm and technology company run by former Microsoft technology… Read More

China, U.S. invention firms collaborate for potential ‘technology incubator center’ in Seattle

by Taylor Soper on September 22, 2015September 27, 2015 at 4:31 pmComment

Two Seattle-area companies today signed a memorandum of understanding with China’s Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology for a partnership that will explore a possible “technology incubator center” in Seattle that would… Read More

Kymeta partners with Sharp to build satellite internet antennas with TV screen tech

by James Risley on August 18, 2015August 18, 2015 at 8:17 amComment

The future of satellite internet may rely on tech already found in your TV screen. LCD manufacturers are providing solutions for tracking fast-moving satellites to provide internet coverage around the world. Kymeta,… Read More

Court rejects Intellectual Ventures appeal in Capital One case, citing ‘unpatentable abstract ideas’

by Todd Bishop on July 7, 2015July 7, 2015 at 12:48 pm 5 Comments

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has ruled against Intellectual Ventures in a dispute with Capital One Financial, finding that two of the company’s patents were based… Read More

UCLA student op-ed slams Nathan Myhrvold as commencement speaker

by Frank Catalano on April 28, 2015April 28, 2015 at 1:38 pm 7 Comments

UCLA alumnus Nathan Myhrvold has just joined an elite group: graduation commencement speakers that have ignited controversy simply by being chosen to speak. A strongly worded opinion column in today’s Daily Bruin… Read More

Intellectual Ventures licenses patents to Shazam music recognition app

by Taylor Soper on March 31, 2015March 31, 2015 at 8:13 am1 Comment

Intellectual Ventures today announced that it has licensed its portfolio of 40,000 patents and patent applications to Shazam, makers of the popular music recognition app. As part of the deal, Shazam… Read More

Intellectual Ventures scores partial win in Motorola Mobility patent case

by Blair Hanley Frank on March 25, 2015March 25, 2015 at 8:20 pm1 Comment

A jury in Delaware has ruled today that devices made by Motorola Mobility violated a patent having to do with multimedia messaging owned by Intellectual Ventures. It’s rough news for Motorola… Read More

Intellectual Ventures’ laser mosquito zapper lands key licensing deal

by Frank Catalano on March 3, 2015March 3, 2015 at 9:11 am 5 Comments

An advanced “photonic fence” for zapping mosquitoes and other pests with light is one step closer to market. Intellectual Venture’s Global Good and Florida-based Lighting Science have signed an agreement to… Read More

Intellectual Ventures licenses patents to Ford, pushing into auto industry

by Todd Bishop on February 27, 2015February 27, 2015 at 8:10 am 6 Comments

Intellectual Ventures has licensed its portfolio of 40,000 patents and patent applications to Ford Motor Co., according to an announcement from the Bellevue, Wash.-based company this morning. The deal also gives… Read More

Intellectual Ventures wins $17M patent verdict against Symantec

by Todd Bishop on February 6, 2015February 6, 2015 at 5:29 pm 6 Comments

Intellectual Ventures won a $17 million jury verdict against Symantec in federal court in Delaware today — significantly less than the $298 million Intellectual Ventures was seeking, but a victory… Read More

Intellectual Ventures teams up with GE to fight malaria

by Blair Hanley Frank on February 5, 2015February 5, 2015 at 5:16 pm 3 Comments

Intellectual Ventures’s Global Good division has teamed up with General Electric to create a new test for malaria that’s designed to spot even the parasites that cause the disease, even… Read More

Intellectual Ventures hires former Washington State first lady Mona Locke as communications exec

by Todd Bishop on January 13, 2015January 13, 2015 at 11:22 amComment

Intellectual Ventures has hired Mona Locke, a former journalist best known as Washington State’s former first lady, as its new senior vice president of corporate communications and marketing. The hire was announced… Read More

Intellectual Ventures co-founder Peter Detkin stepping down as vice chairman

by Blair Hanley Frank on December 12, 2014December 12, 2014 at 10:23 am1 Comment

Intellectual Ventures co-founder Peter Detkin announced today that he will be stepping down as the company’s Vice Chairman on January 1. In an interview with IAM, Detkin said that he plans… Read More

Why this wearable tech startup is teaming with Intellectual Ventures

by Todd Bishop on October 28, 2014November 2, 2014 at 8:25 amComment

Jose Torres smiles when I point out what happens when someone Googles the phrase “Intellectual Ventures.” The company, led by former Microsoft technology chief Nathan Myhrvold, is a lightning rod in… Read More

Intellectual Ventures founder on the rise of China as an ‘invention superpower’

by Todd Bishop on September 5, 2014September 5, 2014 at 10:55 am 2 Comments

Intellectual Ventures, the Bellevue-based patent holding and technology company, has been through lots of ups and downs lately — laying off employees and trying to bring new products to market… Read More

Intellectual Ventures expands patent business into apartment construction, strikes joint venture with architecture firm

by Todd Bishop on September 4, 2014September 4, 2014 at 10:13 amComment

Intellectual Ventures, the patent holding and technology development firm, is expanding its patent business into technology for housing construction through a new joint venture with the CollinsWoerman architectural firm. The Innovative… Read More

Nathan Myhrvold’s Intellectual Ventures cuts 140 employees from its patent-buying workforce

by Tricia Duryee on August 19, 2014August 24, 2014 at 9:08 am 4 Comments

Intellectual Ventures, the Bellevue, Wash.-based patent holding firm run by former Microsoft technology chief Nathan Myhrvold, has laid off 20 percent of its employees. The layoffs will affect around 140… Read More