Rate My Professor Tomas Cruz Pires Ribeiro

Tomas Cruz Pires Ribeiro is the Business Development Manager and Patent Attorney in the Research and Enterprise division at the University of Otago, with responsibility for health and wellbeing, and international development portfolios. Employed at Otago Innovation Ltd since April 2017, he assesses intellectual property developed by university staff and students, conducting patentability searches to confirm novelty, consulting directly with inventors on their technologies, drafting and filing patent applications in partnership with external attorneys, and incorporating IP strategies into research grant proposals. Ribeiro judges the university's annual Proof of Concept and Translational Research Grant competitions, supporting the transition of academic innovations to commercial applications. His work ensures researchers protect their ideas before public disclosure, preserving opportunities for investment and development.

Ribeiro holds a Master's degree in Cellular and Molecular Biology and is a registered Trans-Tasman patent attorney. His career in intellectual property began in 1999 as a patent examiner at the Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand, advancing to Assistant Commissioner of Patents at the Ministry of Economic Development. He gained experience in the pharmaceuticals industry in England and Scotland, assessed investment opportunities for the Scottish government through Scottish Enterprise, and worked at one of New Zealand's largest IP law firms in its Auckland office. At Otago, he has facilitated key patents, including US Patent No. 10,494,344 for a quantum radio invention in 2020 and a US patent for an advanced drug delivery system in 2022 with Professor John Reynolds, hailed as the 'holy grail' of treatments. Ribeiro contributes to the academic community by sharing expertise on patent myths and best practices through university publications, advocating for proactive IP management to enhance research impact.