Health & Bio / Pharma AI

Life sciences have been data driven for a while now: from omics and in vitro imaging to healthcare records via medical imaging and sensor data, there is an absolute wealth of noisy information to work with at every scale

This means that the opportunities for application of AI are equally abundant. From diagnosis, to drug design and patient monitoring, you name a problem - AI has been applied to it.  

At Mewburn, we have extensive experience dealing with technology in all of these areas, a deep understanding of the problems tackled, the various data types used (e.g. imaging, omics, etc.) and the types of AI applied (from simple classifiers to large language models and multimodal deep learning). We believe that dedicated technical expertise in this field is important, and we speak the same technical language as you.  

We also understand that an IP strategy that considers all types of IP rights (including software copyright, patents and trade secrets), to achieve commercial goals is essential in this very specific environment, in which many projects use open source software, lead to regulated assets, and frequently involve collaborations and partnerships. 

With over ten years experience working specifically in this field, we know inside and out what can be patented in jurisdictions all over the world, and work with a hand-picked network of attorneys worldwide to ensure that we get the best for our clients. 

Our team

Camille Terfve circle-1

Camille Terfve, Partner

Camille has particular expertise in data driven approaches in pharma, biotech and healthcare. She has a wealth of experience dealing with the use of AI for medical and biological data analysis, from protein language models to multimodal learning on health data. She advises clients of all size on patentability, IP strategy, opposition, drafting and prosecution in this specific field, often acting as the resident expert on the topic for her larger clients. Having been working in this field for 10+ years, she has deep experience of EPO practice in this regard, and a network of trusted attorneys worldwide who can handle this work. She is passionate about maths and data, and her alternate reality self would work as an AI researcher for one of her clients. 

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Christopher Casley, Partner

Christopher focuses on machine learning applied to biomarker signatures for diagnostic, prognostic and treatment response prediction applications. He has a BA in Natural Sciences (Pharmacology) from Cambridge University and a PhD in Biochemistry from University College London. Christopher also has post-doctoral research experience in the pharmaceutical industry. Christopher has extensive experience with invention capture, patent drafting and global patent prosecution for inventions relating to ML classifiers for use in cancer early detection and treatment management. 

Chris has also completed a Machine Learning Specialization course with Stanford University. 

Emma Graham - Circle

Emma Graham, Partner

Emma focuses on AI as applied to e commerce, educational tools, digital health, internet of things, as well as optics/photonics. She recognises the fast moving nature of software and the need to obtain protection quickly. She takes a proactive approach in prosecution including arranging examiner interviews and regularly advises upon acceleration mechanisms, both locally in the UK and Europe as well as across global portfolios. Emma has a particular focus on drafting applications designed to achieve the best protection possible in both Europe and the US; a skill that often requires just the right amount of compromise. In 2014 she spent time on secondment working in Silicon Valley, giving her a unique perspective of the challenges that US applicants face when patenting in Europe.

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Tom Furnival, Partner

Tom has a particular interest in transport and logistics, AI hardware as well as health/bioinformatics. He has a wealth of hands-on experience in the AI space, having worked with companies across the technical spectrum in areas such as multi modal threat detection, neurological assessments, and video analysis.

Tom works with inventors during the invention capture process to ensure that the resulting patent application is robust and suitable across jurisdictions. He also regularly assists foreign attorneys to obtain European protection for AI inventions. 

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Daniel Brodsky, Partner

Daniel has a focus on technology areas involving interactions between hardware and AI algorithms. Daniel has particular interest in the medtech field, with extensive experience in the patent landscape around surgical instruments and electrosurgical systems. His work encompasses drafting and prosecution of UK, European and PCT applications in the field of AI, as well as patent prosecution in a variety of jurisdictions such as the US, Japan and China. Daniel also regularly advises clients on FTO and patent-landscaping projects, and has experience of examining and opposition division oral proceedings at the EPO. Daniel works with a mix of different clients, including local start-ups, universities, and UK innovators, as well as multinationals and international attorneys.

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Alex Burns, IP Director

Alex focuses on inventions relating to artificial intelligence and machine-learning, as well as other technologies having a strong mathematical focus, such as cybersecurity and cryptography. His experience includes both drafting patent applications for AI technologies, and prosecuting AI patent applications in the UK, Europe, and internationally. Alex has handled patent applications for bioinformatics, medical image processing, cheminformatics, and pharmacokinetics as well as inventions relating to core AI, such as methods of training machine-learning algorithms, functioning of individual neurons in an artificial neural network, and explainable AI. Alex also has experience drafting patent applications relating to the application of generative AI in healthcare. Alex has completed a Machine Learning Specialization course with Stanford University. 

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Callum Anderson, Associate

Callum has a particular interest in AI as applied to image and signal processing, with a special interest within the context of medical technologies. Callum has experience drafting and prosecuting applications in the fields of medical imaging, surgical instruments, electrosurgical systems and signal handling. He also has experience in handling patent applications relating to the use of AI in smart domestic appliances, AR/VR systems, wearables and network solutions.

His work includes drafting and prosecution of UK, European and PCT applications, as well as working with international attorneys to prosecute applications in jurisdictions such as the US, Japan and China. Callum works with a wide variety of clients, from running IP clinics for university start-ups to assisting large multinationals with their patent portfolios.

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Alex Savin, Associate

Alex has a particular expertise in the application of AI to simulation and imaging, especially in the nuclear, medical and space-tech sectors.

Alex has experience working across all stages of the patent life cycle on inventions leveraging the power of AI, from invention capture and drafting, through prosecution, to opposition proceedings at the EPO. He is experienced in helping start-up companies and SMEs build and manage their patent portfolios.

Alex also drafts and prosecutes applications in the bioinformatics space, and in the field of AI-based generative design – e.g. for the purpose of electronics design.

Case study: AI driven biotech

We have supported multiple AI-driven UK-based advanced therapeutics and therapeutics development companies to develop a strong patent portfolio underlying their AI-driven platforms, which represent a core asset for partnerships. We worked flexibly to accommodate commercial and publication related requirements, designing an IP strategy that protects valuable assets while enabling the profile raising that is essential to the companies growth. We also advised on transactions to ensure flexibility for the use of platform IP in the future while meeting commercial goals of each partnership.

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Mewburn Ellis Forward is a biannual publication that celebrates the best of innovation and exploration. Through its pages we hope to inform and entertain, but also to encourage discussion about the most compelling developments taking place in the scientific and entrepreneurial world. Along the way, we’ll engage with the IP challenges that international organisations face every day.

 

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