Robert is one of the world’s leading IP investors and lawyers with more than 25 years of experience investing in scaling, protecting, and monetizing breakthrough IP assets of established and growth-stage tech companies, including through licensing and related enforcement actions in U.S. and global markets. Robert has generated over $3 billion in lifetime royalties and related earnings produced in partnerships with companies across high-tech and biotech industries. Robert also founded the New York office of one of the nation’s leading IP law firms – McKool Smith – and served as its managing partner from 2008 to 2018. Prior to McKool Smith, Robert was a leader and partner in the global IP group of Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe. Robert has a Juris Doctor degree from St. John’s University and a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Syracuse University. He is ranked by Intellectual Asset Management (IAM) as one of the World’s Top IP leaders.

Neal is a results-oriented IP finance professional working with established and growth-stage tech companies. Neal was formerly VP of Finance and Head of Corporate Development & Strategy at Interdigital, Inc., where he led finance, M&A, and long-range strategic planning. Interdigital, a public company, is one the world’s largest IP businesses focused on licensing its own internally developed technologies and complementary technologies of companies acquired through mergers and acquisitions. He was previously a Managing Director at Evercore in its Technology, Media and Telecommunications group. He led M&A transactions worldwide from beginning to close with 20+ completed transactions with an aggregate transaction value of $60B+. Neal holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics with Concentration in Finance from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

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Brain is one the world’s leading IP management and licensing executives. He has had held senior executive positions at leading tech companies. He served as Chief IP Officer at Royal Philips responsible for its IP asset portfolio generating $500M+ in annual royalty revenues from technology, patent, trade secret, and brand licensing. He led a global team of 400+ professionals, including IP legal, licensing, and technical professionals. In addition, Brian managed all aspects of IBM’s IP asset portfolio generating $1 billion+ in annual royalty revenues. He also served as a Captain in the United States Air Force.  Brian has a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Pittsburgh and an MBA from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Brian was inducted into the IP Hall of Fame by Intellectual Asset Management (IAM) and is ranked as one of the world’s top IP leaders.

Michael brings over 25 years of experience in scaling manufacturing and other operations, driving global growth, and leveraging a company’s IP assets to deliver transformative outcomes for both companies and investors. Michael is adept at transforming IP assets—spanning technology (including new product and equipment designs and process innovations), patents, trade secrets, and brands—into scalable, revenue-generating solutions for expanding a company’s penetration into new markets, industries, and end uses. Michael has served as CEO, COO, and in other executive leadership positions in global manufacturing companies such as Procter & Gamble, Burlington Industries, and Tietex International, where he successfully drove operational transformations, led M&A, and spearheaded global growth strategies. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Engineering from North Carolina State University and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Pierre has more than 25 years of experience in developing, protecting, and litigating the patents, trade secrets, and other intellectual property ownership rights of emerging and established tech companies, assisting these companies in protecting their IP assets from copying and unauthorized use. He is a former partner in the IP groups of two leading global law firms and a former shareholder of McKool Smith, PC, one of the top IP law firms in the U.S. for licensing and enforcement of IP rights.  Pierre has represented clients in federal district courts throughout the U.S., the International Trade Commission (ITC), the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB). Pierre obtained his Juris Doctor degree from New York University School of Law, a Master’s degree from the University of Texas at Austin, and a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Rice University. Pierre is a former two-year-term judicial law clerk for the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which handles appeals in patent cases from federal courts throughout the nation.

Erin brings almost 20 years of expertise in corporate law, including complex transactions, securities litigation, and corporate governance. She is a former partner at a boutique Austin law firm specializing in the energy sector, where she handled commercial transactions, regulatory advocacy, and litigation. Erin also practiced in the securities litigation group of Akin Gump, representing clients in high-stakes corporate and financial disputes. Erin has also served as a general counsel for early and growth-stage tech companies, providing comprehensive legal support on governance, structuring, employment matters, and high-value contracts across multiple industries enabling her to address the diverse legal needs of Cote Global and its portfolio companies. Erin earned her Juris Doctor degree from Baylor University School of Law, graduating magna cum laude, and has a B.A in Political Science from Abilene Christian University.

Greg is Senior Vice President, Chief Technology Officer (CTO), and General Manager of the Software and Advanced Technology Group (SATG) at Intel Corporation. As CTO, he is responsible for driving Intel’s future technical innovation and research programs. He is also responsible for defining a singular artificial intelligence software stack to support Intel’s range of business and hardware offerings. Greg joined Intel in June 2021 from VMware, where he served as senior vice president and CTO.  Before VMware, Greg was managing director and CTO for Cloud Architecture and Technology Engineering at Citigroup, where he led the global digital transformation of Citi to adopt modern mobile technology, cloud IaaS and PaaS, big data and advanced analytics, high performance computing, and agile software development models. Prior to Citi, he was corporate vice president of Network Software Engineering at Cisco. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from the University of Georgia, and a Master of Science and Ph.D. in Computer Science from Virginia Tech.

Robert is a leading economist. He has conducted deep analysis and advised U.S. and foreign government and business leaders on a range of critical economic and political issues including the value and significance of IP to a nation’s economic growth. His work on IP issues includes analysis and advice for President Bill Clinton, cabinet officials under Presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump, British Prime Minister Tony Blair, senior officials in the governments of India and Brazil, and C-Suite officers of Fortune 100 companies. He co-authored seminal studies with Dr. Kevin Hassett, currently Director of the National Economic Council in the Trump Administration, on the impact of IP on the U.S. and global economies. Dr. Shapiro was Under Secretary of Commerce for Economic Affairs in the Clinton administration. Robert holds a Ph.D. from Harvard University and  M.Sc. From the London School of Economics and Political Science.