Leave the office behind!
“Explore Nature and Network with LES-SVC”

Wednesday, August 20, 2025

Join the Silicon Valley Chapter on a fun hike in Palo Alto's Arastradero Preserve. Then we move to Rossotti’s Alpine Inn in Portola Valley for a social get-together. (If you don’t want to hike, then join us at Rossotti’s at 5:00 p.m.)

FOR HIKERS - Please read:  
WAIVER REQUIRED: Hike participants will be required to sign a waiver in order to participate.  Please download the link below, sign and bring to the hike.  Hard copies will also be available at the hike.

WAIVER LINK

HIKING (Optional)
Arastradero Preserve
4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.

REGISTER ONLINE TODAY!

(Meeting at the parking lot at 4:15 p..m., leaving promptly at 4:30 p.m. – see parking lot link below)

Calling all beginners to experienced hikers! Take a break from the office and lace up your hiking boots or tennis shoes to explore the beautiful Arastradero Preserve trails around Portola Valley. 

We will be meeting at the Arastradero Preserve parking lot at 4:15 p.m. at 1530 Arastradero Road, Palo Alto (see link below).

Important: If you have difficulty locating the hiking group, please call Efrat Kasznik, 650-255-4943.

Be sure to bring plenty of water, sunscreen and a hat as we expect 80 degrees tomorrow!

Arastradero Preserve - Link to Parking Lot

Networking & Social Get-together
5:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
Rossotti’s Alpine Inn
3915 Alpine Rd, at Arastradero Road, Portola Valley, CA
(Parking at Rossotti's – see below)

See you at Rossotti's Alpine Inn – whether you're coming straight from our scenic hike or joining us after work for networking and socializing in a beautiful setting (some of our SVC Board members will be in attendance to greet you). Please note, attendees are responsible for their own food and beverage expenses. See parking availability below.

Parking: Rossotti’s encourages guests to carpool, utilize ride share, horseback ride in, or bike in. All guests who arrive in a full car with 4+ adults will either receive front-row parking or a coupon for a free pitcher of beer if the front-row parking is full. The parking lot is staffed with attendants. Be mindful of parking on public roads. Please do not park vehicle in any way that blocks bikers and other vehicles. Cars parked over the white line on public roads can be ticketed and/or towed.

LES-SVC August Chapter Meeting: 

IP Valuation in Special Situations - Part 2 of 4-Part Webinar Series:

"Role of IP in Shaping Smarter Startup Investment Decisions "

Tuesday, August 26, 2025
8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. PT

REGISTER ONLINE TODAY!

Program:

In today's innovation-driven economy, intellectual property (IP) is often the most valuable asset in a startup’s portfolio—but how do investors know what it’s really worth when they make an investment decision? Join us for an interactive session exploring how IP valuation informs startup valuation and investment decisions, from early-stage financing to venture capital deals. Led by IP and startup valuation expert and LES Board member, Efrat Kasznik, this webinar will explore investor valuation methodologies and best practices for assessing a startup’s IP value based on the type of capital invested (debt v. equity) and the startup's industry and business model. This webinar is valuable for entrepreneurs, investors, funds, universities and anyone navigating the complex landscape of startup finance.

Part 3 will take place in the fall and more information will be available soon!

Reading materials: "Closing the intangible valuation gap in M&A deal pricing" (IAM Media, Oct. 7, 2024).

Speakers:
Efrat Kasznik, LES-SVC Chair, LES Board Member, President, Foresight Valuation Group   LinkedIn
Efrat is an IP valuation and strategy expert with more than 25 years of consulting experience assisting clients with the valuation, strategic management and monetization of their intellectual property and technologies. She is president of Foresight Valuation Group LLC – a Silicon Valley-based IP valuation and litigation consulting firm – as well as a start-up advisory firm. Efrat is also an appointed lecturer on IP management at the Stanford Graduate School of Business (GSB), where she lectures on IP issues at the GSB’s MBA and executive education programs. Efrat specializes in analyzing IP and technology portfolios for a range of business transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, financial reporting, technology commercialization and business liquidations. She frequently testifies as an expert witness in legal cases involving damages or valuations of intellectual property and start-ups, as well as in high net worth divorce cases involving the valuation of intangible assets and technology startups. Efrat has been listed on the IAM 300 list of World Leading IP Strategists every year since 2013. She is actively involved in leadership roles with LES USA-Canada, where she currently serves as a board member, in addition to serving as Chair of the LES Silicon Valley chapter.

Guest Speakers: Bankruptcy Attorney, IP Owner/Entrepreneur (all TBC)

September LES Silicon Valley Chapter In-Person Event

“Copyright, Fair Use and AI: The Current State of the Law”

Register for Free Today!

 Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025

11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. – Registration, Lunch & Networking
12:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. – Program
1:30 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. – Post-Session Networking

 Location: Morgan Lewis,1400 Page Mill Road, Palo Alto, CA

Thank you to our meeting sponsor:

 Program Overview

Join LES-SVC and the LES High Technology Sector for our annual September event at Morgan Lewis to explore the intersection of copyright law, artificial intelligence (AI) innovation, and fair use. This expert panel will provide timely insights into headline-making cases—from lawsuits against generative AI platforms (Anthropic, Meta) to the implications of Disney v. Midjourney—and how these rulings could reshape development, use, and licensing of AI tools.

Now in its third year, our September forum at Morgan Lewis has become a flagship gathering to examine how advances in AI challenge existing legal frameworks and business models. Don’t miss this opportunity to connect with legal and IP professionals on the front lines of change.

Participants: Licensing Professionals, Intellectual Property Managers, Content Creators, Copyright and Trademark Owners, AI Innovators, Entrepreneurs, Business Development Executives, Investors, and Attorneys

 Key Takeaways

• Understand how courts are interpreting fair use in the age of AI-generated content
• Analyze recent case law and litigation involving AI model training and content reproduction
• Explore potential legal frameworks to support responsible AI innovation and IP licensing
• Gain actionable insights for innovators, rights holders, and legal advisors navigating this evolving landscape

 Speakers & Moderator

Derek Stettner, Partner, Michael Best & Friedrich LLP
LinkedIn 

Derek brings deep expertise in IP law, with a focus on emerging technologies and AI. His recent work examines how copyright and patent doctrines must evolve with machine learning and data-driven innovation.

 Heather Meeker, Managing Partner, Tech Law Partners
LinkedIn 

A renowned thought leader on open source licensing and software law, Heather has advised global tech companies on legal strategies for open innovation, including licensing models for AI and data assets.

 Ahren Hsu-Hoffman, Partner, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP
LinkedIn 

Ahren leads high-stakes IP litigation and strategic counseling at the intersection of AI and law. A consistent LES-SVC supporter, he brings both litigation insight and business foresight.

Jason Eshraghian, Assistant Professor with the Dept. of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of California, Santa Cruz | LinkedIn 

Jason Eshraghian is an Assistant Professor with the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of California, Santa Cruz  where he leads the Neuromorphic Computing Group, with the goal of bridging the gap between natural and artificial intelligence. He received the Bachelor of Engineering (Electrical and Electronic) and the Bachelor of Laws degrees from The University of Western Australia, WA, Australia, in 2016, where he also received the Ph.D. Degree in 2019. From 2019 to 2022, he was a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at the University of Michigan, MI, USA. 

He serves as the Chair of the IEEE Neural Systems and Applications Technical Committee and as an Associate Editor for APL Machine Learning, has been awarded numerous IEEE best paper awards for his work on brain-inspired machine learning, and is the recipient of several Fellowships, including a Fulbright Fellowship.

 Moderator: Sean Clark, Vice President, Licensing, Adeia and LES-SVC Board Member
LinkedIn 

Sean brings an operator’s lens to legal and commercial strategy. He leads licensing at Adeia, where innovation and IP monetization go hand in hand. Sean previously served as IP counsel and deal negotiator across multiple tech domains.

 CLE Credit

This program is being submitted for 1.0 hour of California MCLE credit (TBC). More details to come.

 Thank You to Our Host and Sponsor

Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP
We are grateful to our longtime LES-SVC community partners at Morgan Lewis for hosting this important conversation for the third consecutive year. Their leadership in shaping dialogue around AI and law continues to elevate the IP ecosystem in Silicon Valley.

Past September Events at Morgan Lewis:

• Sept 2024: AI and the Law – What You Need to Know Today
• Sept 2023: Thinking Outside the Lab – Opportunities at the Intersection of Healthcare Data, Licensing, and AI

 Registration

Free for LES Members and Guests.
 Register for Free Today!

LES-SVC October Chapter Meeting: 

IP Valuation in Special Situations - Part 3 of 4-Part Webinar Series:

"IP-backed lending"

Tuesday, October 28, 2025 (TBC)
8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. PT

REGISTRATION COMING SOON!

Program:

TBC

The first 60 minutes will include the valuation presentation and the guest speaker, followed by 30 minutes of “ask me anything” (AMA) - an open forum for Q&A and group discussion on the topics covered in the webinar.

Topics to be covered include:

• TBC

Reading materials: "Closing the intangible valuation gap in M&A deal pricing" (IAM Media, Oct. 7, 2024).

Speakers:
Efrat Kasznik, LES-SVC Chair, LES Board Member, President, Foresight Valuation Group   LinkedIn
Efrat is an IP valuation and strategy expert with more than 25 years of consulting experience assisting clients with the valuation, strategic management and monetization of their intellectual property and technologies. She is president of Foresight Valuation Group LLC – a Silicon Valley-based IP valuation and litigation consulting firm – as well as a start-up advisory firm. Efrat is also an appointed lecturer on IP management at the Stanford Graduate School of Business (GSB), where she lectures on IP issues at the GSB’s MBA and executive education programs. Efrat specializes in analyzing IP and technology portfolios for a range of business transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, financial reporting, technology commercialization and business liquidations. She frequently testifies as an expert witness in legal cases involving damages or valuations of intellectual property and start-ups, as well as in high net worth divorce cases involving the valuation of intangible assets and technology startups. Efrat has been listed on the IAM 300 list of World Leading IP Strategists every year since 2013. She is actively involved in leadership roles with LES USA-Canada, where she currently serves as a board member, in addition to serving as Chair of the LES Silicon Valley chapter.

Guest Speakers: IP Capital Investor(s), Insurance Underwriter, Entrepreneur (all TBC)

November LES Silicon Valley Chapter In-Person Event

“Royalty Compliance and Dispute Resolution”

Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025

11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. – Networking, Registration, Lunch
12:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. – Program
1:30 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. – Networking

Location: KPMG Silicon Valley Office

2755 Augustine Drive, Suite 701
Santa Clara, CA 95054

Thank you to our meeting sponsor:

PANEL-- TBC
Braden Weatherhead, Managing Director, KPMG IP Compliance
Michael Pierantozzi, Board Member, LES-SVC, IAM Strategy 300 (Fmr HP IPL and KPMG IP Consulting)

Who Should Attend: Licensing Professionals, Intellectual Property Managers, FFRDC Managers, Inventors, Entrepreneurs, Business Development Executives, Investors, and Attorneys

Braden Weatherhead, Managing Director, KPMG IP Compliance  LinkedIn
Braden is a Managing Director and KPMG’s commercial line of business leader for contract compliance. He has over sixteen years of experience in providing royalty audit services to multinational organizations in a variety of industries including High Technology, Semiconductors, Consumer Products, Diagnostics, and Pharmaceuticals.  Braden has deep experience in helping to establish and execute global contract compliance programs combining elements of data analytics, royalty monitoring, audit targeting and remediation. He has led the development of cloud-based data aggregation, monitoring and executive dashboard tool to help better identify licensee compliance issues which range from erroneous reporting, low royalty payment and fraud. He has significant experience successfully managing relationships between potentially contentious third parties in an audit environment. Braden is also well versed in performing advanced data analytics and has developed analytical tools to implement proactive monitoring solutions leveraging third party data.  All together, these programs have resulted in the identification of over $300 million in overpaid rebates & discounts while strengthening contract lifecycle management and strategy.  Braden is a Certified Public Accountant and member of the AICPA.

Michael Pierantozzi, Moderator and Board Member, LES-SVC (IAM Strategy 300)  LinkedIn
Based in Silicon Valley, Michael is a technology and intellectual property (Tech/IP) entrepreneur, strategist and transaction expert. Andiamo Associates is a management consulting firm that specializes in Tech/IP business catalyzing and monetizing matters. Previously, Michael was responsible for strategic business development, including sales, acquisitions, and licensing for the IP Licensing group at Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), and served as Director of KPMG's IP Consulting practice. Previously, Michael held executive leadership positions at Hewlett-Packard Company (HP) including HPE, Intellectual Ventures (IV), IPotential, and an IP transaction data services startup that he co-founded. Since 2009, Michael has been recognized by Intellectual Asset Management (IAM) Magazine in their IAM 300 rankings as one of the “World’s Leading Intellectual Property Strategists”. He is a frequent speaker at Tech/IP industry events in the US, Europe, and Asia, and has delivered IP management seminars at Stanford University.

LES-SVC December Chapter Meeting: 

IP Valuation in Special Situations - Part 4 of 4-Part Webinar Series:

"Family court"

Tuesday, December 9, 2025 (TBC)
8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. PT

REGISTRATION COMING SOON!

Program:

TBC

The first 60 minutes will include the valuation presentation and the guest speaker, followed by 30 minutes of “ask me anything” (AMA) - an open forum for Q&A and group discussion on the topics covered in the webinar.

Topics to be covered include:

• TBC

Reading materials: "Closing the intangible valuation gap in M&A deal pricing" (IAM Media, Oct. 7, 2024).

Speakers:
Efrat Kasznik, LES-SVC Chair, LES Board Member, President, Foresight Valuation Group   LinkedIn
Efrat is an IP valuation and strategy expert with more than 25 years of consulting experience assisting clients with the valuation, strategic management and monetization of their intellectual property and technologies. She is president of Foresight Valuation Group LLC – a Silicon Valley-based IP valuation and litigation consulting firm – as well as a start-up advisory firm. Efrat is also an appointed lecturer on IP management at the Stanford Graduate School of Business (GSB), where she lectures on IP issues at the GSB’s MBA and executive education programs. Efrat specializes in analyzing IP and technology portfolios for a range of business transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, financial reporting, technology commercialization and business liquidations. She frequently testifies as an expert witness in legal cases involving damages or valuations of intellectual property and start-ups, as well as in high net worth divorce cases involving the valuation of intangible assets and technology startups. Efrat has been listed on the IAM 300 list of World Leading IP Strategists every year since 2013. She is actively involved in leadership roles with LES USA-Canada, where she currently serves as a board member, in addition to serving as Chair of the LES Silicon Valley chapter.

Guest Speakers: Attorney, Family Office Manager, Entrepreneur (all TBC)