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IP Summit

Thursday, April 30, 2026

2026 Recap

Presented by New Ventures BC, Innovate BC, and the Ministry of Jobs and Economic Growth. 

Thank you to everyone who joined us on April 30, 2026 for a day of conversations on IP strategy, innovation, AI, commercialization, and scaling Canadian companies.

We gratefully acknowledge the financial support of Innovate BC and the Province of British Columbia through the Ministry of Jobs and Economic Growth. 

View the 2026 IP Capacity Framework

2026 Speakers

Ali Ardakani

Founder & Managing Director, NovateurRead More

Brian J. Lally

Associate General Counsel, Intellectual Property - Transactions & Market Compliance, Ford Motor Company – Office of General CounselRead More

Byron Thom

Partner, BDC Industrial Innovation Venture Fund (I2VF)Read More

Chang Han

EiR (Entrepreneur in Residence, Innovation UBCRead More

Conor Sheehan

Vice President, Global IP Business Development, UnitedLexRead More

Derek de Laat

President & CEO, FIN IP GroupRead More

Dr. Houston Brown

IP Executive & Registered Patent Agent, In-House IPRead More

Erin Pisko

VP, Strategy Innovation Asset Collective (IAC)Read More

Graeme Herring

VP, Intellectual Property Strategy, TerrameraRead More

Jason Robertson

Co-Founder, Managing Partner & CEO, Nimbus SynergiesRead More

Jessica Yip

COO & Co-Founder, A&K RoboticsRead More

Joel Semeniuk

CEO, PrimalRead More

Karn Manhas

Founder & Executive Chair, TerrameraRead More

Kerry Hillier

Vice President & General Counsel, Ballard Power SystemsRead More

Lally Rementilla

Lead Partner, IP Investment PartnersRead More

Maryam Sadeghi

CEO, MetaOptimaRead More

Natalie Dakers

CEO, A2O Advanced Materials Inc.Read More

Peter Cowan

President & CEO, Innovate BCRead More

Rachel Haller

Senior Corporate Counsel, MicrosoftRead More

Sheila Schindel

Managing Director, Commercialization & IP Programs, Innovate BCRead More

Todd Bailey

Chief IP Officer & General Counsel, Scale AIRead More

IP Resources:

2025 IP Summit

Watch last year’s IP Summit sessions.

BC IP Hub

Developed in alignment with the Province of British Columbia's Intellectual Property Strategy, this is a one-stop-shop destination for relevant and dynamic IP resources in support of B.C. companies and entrepreneurs.

2025 IP Whitepaper: Why Canada Needs a Unified Approach to IP Education

A proposal for national alignment on the approach to the creation and delivery of IP education for Canadian innovation businesses and post-secondary institutions, to address long standing systemic IP literacy gaps.

IP Capacity Framework

This Framework represents a shared baseline for IP capability development and certification outcomes - one that can be used or adapted by IP programs across the country.

2026 Event Partners:

New Ventures BC acknowledges that we gather and work on the traditional, ancestral and unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and Sel̓íl̓witulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.

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