HACKER Q&A
📣 alirsgp

If I developed IP and go work for a big tech company, do they claim it?


So long story short, I'm going to a big tech company in May and currently am the owner of a dating app. The big tech company has also dabbled in the dating space.

I published the IP prior to starting my job. But am wondering if the tech company will try to take my IP from me after I start working, assuming I still update the IP every now and then with minor updates.

This is in California if that helps. My product is fairly different than theirs, but they are both technically in the dating space.

I plan to disclose this to them within 2 weeks of starting. Am somewhat worried they will ask me to transfer my code over to them that I've been working on in college for 7 months or they tell me I need to shut down the app because they feel threatened by it.

Alternatively I could just not tell them. I think I'm protected under Section 2870 of California's Labor Code but not sure.

I'd be pretty upset if I have to transfer them my IP after I start working there. Do I need to worry too much about this?

  👤 mojomark Accepted Answer ✓
Not a lawyer, but have navigated IP partitioning with big engineering firms for over two decades. General answer to you question is "no", but the truth of course is that it depends on when and how you've protected your IP, and what country your in.

If you're in the USA and you patent a technology, then join a company, the company doesn't have a claim to that technology unless you both explicitly agree to it during your onboarding. For example, it's possible a part of the reason a company want to bring you onboard is that they are partly interested in you're IP and partly interested in your ability to develop/implement that technology (the latter being exceedingly more difficult that generating the initial idea). In any event, you may agree to sign over IP rights (fully or partially) in exchange for better compensation.

If you don't patent your IP before joining a large company, then you need to review the IP terms before you join, because in general (certainly not always) companies do tend to claim ownership of any IP you create while employed at their company. However, this clause is mostly to protect the company not inhibit your creativity or success, so you can easily get a waiver to keep building and securing IP for your own gain. That's what I did.

👤 uberman
You will definitely want to tell them about it and have in writing that they recognize that what is yours is yours. If they ask you to assign it to them politely tell them no. The worst situation you could be in is to have them find out in the future with some notion that you wronged them. If they press the issue of IP with you can decide at that point what you want to do.

For what it is worth, I joined a startup with a bogus "all your ip is now our ip" clause as well as an overly broad "non-compete" clause. I simply struck those entire sections from my contract. In the end, they asked me for a list of my IP/inventions and I provided them the folder structure of my side projects drive. I agreed (in writing) that I would never work on any of my own IP with their resources.

I told them flat out that I would accept an alternate offer if the perused the issue. I recognize that this is a different time (given the uncertainty of how the virus will affect the economy) but I feel strongly that what is yours is yours and joining a company does not give them the absolute right to anything you have done prior.