The Competitiveness Office of Abu Dhabi (COAD), part of Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED), has launched the intellectual property (IP) Excellence Centre to incentivise innovation and enhance Abu Dhabi’s global competitiveness by providing a conducive environment to inventors to turn their ideas into innovative and commercial opportunities.
The IP Excellence Centre addresses areas of advancements at the intersection of innovation, technology, and legislations to foster an environment that boosts economic growth and attract talent. The centre is committed to addressing emergent gaps, encourage and incentivise inventors and investors by developing the right frameworks policies, and initiatives to raise awareness, and support stakeholders in the IP registration and commercialisation processes. The IP Excellence Centre is also equipping inventors, startups, and SMEs with the necessary knowledge and tools to maintain their competitive edge, starting with legal protection for their ideas and concepts.
The centre will serve as a specialised hub within COAD, focused on the effective management, protection, and enforcement of intellectual property rights. It will play a pivotal role in facilitating the development and commercialisation of intellectual property, while ensuring a fair and competitive business environment.
The IP excellence centre will operate as a pivot for IP strategy and management across various IP formats, including patents, trademarks, designs, trade secrets, and copyrights, providing inventors, SMEs, and start-ups with an intellectual property regime that will include more than 21 advisory services across the IP value chain.
His Excellency Rashed Abdulkarim Al Blooshi, Undersecretary of ADDED, said: “Abu Dhabi’s soaring Falcon economy is building on our competencies in key sectors, placing digital transformation, innovation, and advanced technologies at the core of economic and social development plans to move into the next stage of our economic diversification 2.0. Therefore, supporting inventors with a comprehensive ecosystem to grow and convert their bright ideas into commercialisable products and services is essential to our progress journey.
“We believe this IP excellence centre will play a critical role in strengthening Abu Dhabi status as preferred destination for talent, businesses, and investments.”
The launch of the IP excellence centre is part of Abu Dhabi Innovates, the general framework of the innovation ecosystem, which was announced in 2022 to support the capabilities of inventors, innovators, and entrepreneurs, contributing to a diversified, smart, and sustainable economy. It focuses on talent and knowledge, funding, space and places, demand, culture, and incentives as key pillars to enrich innovation environment.
The IP Excellence Centre complements efforts and initiatives rolled out by COAD to enhance the innovation ecosystem, accelerating Abu Dhabi transition to a knowledge-based, innovation-driven economy. COAD has launched several programmes including policies and regulations to ensure that innovation incubators, investing in hi-tech solutions and research and development, are providing the right support, space, and tools to inventors and innovators at different stages. It also expanded the patent support service’s scope to cover more services and beneficiaries as well as increasing the financial support.
Her Excellency Hala Al Ameri, Executive Director of COAD, said: “Launching the IP Excellence Centre reflects our commitment to ongoing development of regulatory and institutional frameworks, support of inventors and research and development (R&D), and enhancement of investment environment.”
In addition to implementing rigorous measures to protect and enforce intellectual property rights, the IP Excellence Centre will raise awareness about intellectual property rights, promote compliance, and enhance collaboration with local and global stakeholders.
Her Excellency Hala Al Ameri said: “This IP Excellence Centre represents a significant milestone in our journey to create a robust ecosystem and drive economic growth through innovation. It will empower inventors to develop their ideas in an enabling environment and attract investors to turn these innovations to products and services that will further strengthen Abu Dhabi’s knowledge-based economy.”
