On April 24, RWS partnered with the Chinese National Federation of Industries (CNFI) to host its first large-scale intellectual property (IP) event in Taipei.
The forum “AI-Driven New Era of IP Management – Building a New Ecosystem for the Full IP Lifecycle” brought together nearly 200 professionals from IP and technology sectors. The event explored how artificial intelligence (AI) can support IP management across the full lifecycle, including invention, application strategy, portfolio management, maintenance, analytics and commercialization.
CNFI’s Intellectual Property Committee has long supported the development of Taiwan’s IP environment, including the protection, management and commercialization of intellectual property. That work provided important context for a discussion on how AI and data can help IP teams manage growing complexity.
Taiwan’s IP strength sets the context
The conference was hosted by Wendy Wong, Vice President of Marketing for APAC & India at RWS. Opening remarks were delivered by Frank Lin, Director of the Intellectual Property Department at CNFI, and Emily Wang, Senior Business Development Director for Taiwan, Southeast Asia & Hong Kong at RWS.
Frank Lin spoke about Taiwan’s patent strength and its position in the global technology sector. When measured by US patent grants per million residents, Taiwan ranks among the world’s top tier, approaching 900 grants per million residents at the United States Patent and Trademark Office in 2023.
Semiconductors remain Taiwan’s strongest area of patent activity. Domestic patent applications have long been led by IC manufacturing and equipment, while foreign applications filed in Taiwan are also largely concentrated in the semiconductor industry.
The discussion also covered smart healthcare as an emerging growth area. Taiwan’s strengths in information and communications technology are helping create closer links between medical and engineering teams, opening further opportunities for innovation and IP development.
AI across the full IP lifecycle
James Lacey, CEO of RWS Protect, delivered the keynote presentation, “AI x IP: A New Connected Ecosystem for the Full IP Lifecycle.”
James discussed how RWS supports clients across filing, prosecution, renewals, enforcement and commercialization, and shared practical examples of technology being applied in IP management. One example was Alibaba, where RWS’s renewals solution supports the management of a complex patent portfolio.
He also covered RWS’s crowdsourcing model, which can support efficiency and accuracy in selected IP workflows, and shared insights from RWS’s global AI in IP report. His presentation looked at how AI-powered IP management may develop as teams look for better ways to manage cost, volume, quality and risk.
Practical perspectives from Taiwan’s technology sector
The forum also featured two specialist presentations from senior IP practitioners in Taiwan.
Vince Wang, Director of Legal & Patent Department at Wiwynn, presented “AI Applications in Patent Portfolio Lifecycle Management.” He shared an overview of Wiwynn’s patent development and current IP environment, then discussed how AI can be integrated into the patent lifecycle to support efficiency and value creation.
Spencer Yu, from AUO’s IP Department, presented “Patent Value Engineering & the Role of AI.” His session focused on the relationship between IP, innovation and legal strategy. He introduced an “IA Strategy First” perspective, discussed challenges in AI adoption and shared practical guidance on working with AI tools.
Panel discussion: AI, IP and global innovation
A highlight of the event was the panel discussion moderated by Dr. Cheng Chung-jen, Co-Chief Legal Officer of ASUS and a senior figure in Taiwan’s patent and IP academic community.
Dr. Cheng posed four questions to James Lacey, Vince Wang and Spencer Yu:
- What makes this RWS Protect event in Taipei special, and what does it mean for the local IP community?
- How do you see AI shaping the future of IP, and what role does RWS play in this transformation?
- What excites you most about the current IP landscape in Taiwan?
- Ahead of World IP Day, what advice would you give to companies looking to scale their innovation globally?
The discussion covered AI’s role in IP, Taiwan’s current IP environment and practical considerations for companies looking to scale innovation globally.
Supporting practical AI adoption in IP
The forum showed how AI is becoming part of day-to-day IP operations, especially where teams need to manage large volumes of data, documents and deadlines.
Across the keynote, industry presentations and panel discussion, the emphasis stayed on practical adoption: using AI where it can support more efficient workflows while keeping expert oversight where accuracy, judgment and risk management matter.
Thank you to CNFI for partnering with RWS on the event, and to our speakers, panelists and guests for contributing to such a thoughtful discussion.
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Intellectual Property
Author
Sarah Donnelly
Global Content Strategist
Sarah has worked as a copywriter for more than 20 years. She has written for broadsheet newspapers, magazines and corporate publications across a wide range of sectors. Prior to joining RWS she headed up the marketing department of mid-size company within the energy sector. She now looks after content for the intellectual property division of RWS.