Product managers often wait too long to engage IP counsel. The ideal time for a patentability study is before incurring major, non-recoverable production costs, like creating specialized molds. This prevents sinking significant capital into a product that might infringe on an existing patent and require a costly redesign.

To work more efficiently, Anastasia Soare invented the first dual-ended brow brush with a spoolie but didn't know it was patentable. Now a market standard copied by countless brands, this missed opportunity serves as a key lesson for founders: hire a smart lawyer early to protect all product innovations.

Companies often have undiscovered IP because technologists don't always communicate their innovations effectively. A simple management practice of regularly talking to engineers and asking "What problem are you facing?" and "How did you overcome it?" can surface valuable, patentable solutions that would otherwise go unnoticed.

Instead of treating legal and compliance as departments that add friction, Robinhood PMs get them to buy into the product's vision. When legal partners are excited about the product, they become effective problem-solvers who find ways to enable the best customer experience, rather than blockers.

Beyond speaking the same language as developers, an engineering background provides three critical PM skills: understanding architectural trade-offs to build trust, applying systems thinking to break down complex problems into achievable parts, and using root-cause analysis to look beyond user symptoms.

The choice between a patent and a trade secret is a strategic decision based on vulnerability. If a product can be purchased and deconstructed to reveal its innovation, a patent is the necessary path. Trade secrets are only viable for innovations that are impossible to discover through reverse engineering.

Eleven Labs learned that an effective first legal counsel for a startup must do more than just flag risks. A lawyer from a large corporate background paralyzed the company by only pointing out potential downsides. The right hire acts as a strategic partner who helps navigate the startup risk equation.

A top-tier lawyer’s value mirrors that of a distinguished engineer: it's not just their network, but their ability to architect complex transactions. They can foresee subtle failure modes and understand the entire system's structure, a skill derived from experience with non-public processes and data—the valuable 'reasoning traces' AI models lack.

A key job for junior lawyers is understanding non-legal context for a case, like a pharmaceutical supply chain. AI excels here by rapidly synthesizing massive amounts of diverse, industry-specific information alongside legal precedent, which is a core part of the value.