LOS ANGELES, CA July 20, 2023 – Pioneering IP solutions company Ethan Nathaniel, Inc. knows the future of intellectual property will be defined by artificial intelligence. With the addition of Michael Drapkin - a powerhouse patent attorney and trailblazer in IP process and document automation - there is even more evidence that this AI transformation has arrived.
The company’s founder and chairman Ian Schick announced today that Drapkin - formerly founding partner and practice group leader of one of the country’s premier Big Law patent practices - will serve as Ethan Nathaniel’s new chief executive officer.
“As our new CEO, Michael brings a wealth of experience and unparalleled expertise to the forefront of our operations,” said Schick. “He’s well known for his leadership at a top national patent practice, and his groundbreaking work in IP process and document automation has marked him as a preeminent figure in the industry.”
Among his many accolades, Michael was named the US Patent Practitioner of the Year by Managing IP for 2022, and was a finalist in 2021 and 2023 as well.
"As we continue to redefine the IP portfolio development process with generative AI, our aim is to push the limits of innovation in the patent and broader IP legal sectors.”
— Michael Drapkin, CEO
Drapkin’s appointment underscores Ethan Nathaniel’s commitment to lead the pack in AI-enhanced IP portfolio development, ensuring that the company remains at the cutting edge of the industry’s evolution. Along with Schick - himself a former patent attorney at the global law firm Pillsbury Winthrop - Drapkin believes that Ethan Nathaniel’s breakthroughs in generative AI in the patent space will disrupt an entire industry.
For a video walkthrough on Ethan Nathaniel’s process, click here.
“I am immensely thrilled to take the helm at Ethan Nathaniel during such an exciting and transformative time in the IP industry,” said Drapkin. “As we continue to redefine the IP portfolio development process with generative AI, our aim is to push the limits of innovation in the patent and broader IP legal sectors.”
While the use of generative AI programs like ChatGPT in law remains largely speculative, Ethan Nathaniel has created a breakthrough AI application that radically reduces the time and cost involved in generating patent applications. Complex aspects of patent drafting that would have otherwise required the manual work of attorneys have been fully automated, and the quality of the output has taken a massive leap forward from previous automation advances.
As an early pioneer of this technology, Ethan Nathaniel is setting a benchmark for AI-driven IP portfolio development, with work well underway to expand from their initial patent application preparation solution. Their approach aims to redefine efficiency, precision, and cost-effectiveness in capturing, formalizing, and managing IP assets, vastly improving access to and cost for IP protection for a broad range of organizations.
“Michael’s stellar reputation in IP process automation and his ability to think beyond conventional boundaries align perfectly with our mission,” Schick said. “As we stand at the dawn of this AI-driven era, I am confident that under Michael’s leadership, Ethan Nathaniel will continue to redefine and shape the future of the IP industry.”
While embracing AI, Ethan Nathaniel understands the role that human expertise plays in this new landscape. “The introduction of AI will enhance efficiency, but the essential role of the IP attorney continues to evolve and remain central,” affirmed Drapkin. “The attorney's role will be more focused on strategy, adding value to client interactions, and applying their knowledge to the more nuanced aspects of IP portfolio management.”
Ethan Nathaniel maintains a strong emphasis on trust and quality, recognizing these elements as key to the successful adoption of AI in the IP field. Their commitment to stringent quality control procedures, coupled with expert human oversight of AI-generated content, ensures that their clientele can fully trust in the technologies they employ.
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Steven Crighton
203-560-1083
