The Brutal Truth About Patent Timelines

In the world of patents, timing isn’t just important, it’s everything. There are no second places, only first losers.

For many founders without patent experience, there’s a dangerous misconception that if you invent something first, the rights are yours. That feels fair, right? But unfortunately, that’s not how the system works. And with patents, the rules are the rules.

In reality, it’s not the first to invent who wins. It’s the first to file.

And in today’s hyper-competitive environment, that one-day difference can cost you literally everything.

Ola Wassvik, Co-founder and CCO at Lightbringer

One Week Too Late = Zero Rights

Let me share a hard earned lesson from my early IP days: We carefully crafted one of our first patent applications. Took our time, polished the wording, made sure it was perfect. And just before it was published, we discovered that a competitor had filed for the same thing – one week before us. They got the patent.

We got nothing.

Let that sink in. Months of effort. Legal fees. Internal engineering time. All erased by someone filing just a few days sooner.

This is why experienced entrepreneurs treat patent timelines with urgency. Delay, and you may end up giving your most valuable innovation away for free.

Why Speed Matters More Than Perfection

Too many startups hold off on filing because they want their invention to be “finished” or the patent wording to be “just right.” But here’s the reality:

You can refine your claims after the initial filing.
You can file another more detailed application within 12 months for anything you missed.
But you cannot move your first filing date.

Getting that early filing in buys you time. It gives you 18 months of secrecy (before publication) and 12 months to make international filing decisions. But more importantly, it locks in your priority date—your stake in the ground.

It’s Not Just About Competitors

You may think, “We’re stealth. No one knows what we’re building.” But the competition doesn’t have to know what you’re doing to beat you to the punch.

We live in a world of parallel innovation. Just look at the Nobel Prizes, every year, discoveries are made almost simultaneously by different teams on opposite sides of the world.

It happens in startups too. Multiple smart teams, solving the same problem, at the same time. Only one will win the patent.

And it doesn’t help if your tech gets disclosed before you file. You also need to be very wary of NDAs, of course you have to have them in place to be able to show someone your technology without losing your rights. But NDAs don’t stop the other party from filing a patent application to your invention. You will have to sue them to get the rights back, and most often it’s a potential customer that is the offender. A filed patent, on the other hand, protects you immediately.

By the way, using the grace period in the US generally does not protect against independent filing first during that grace period.

How to Move Fast (Without Going Broke)

Here’s the good news: you don’t need to file a full international patent on day one. You just need a priority filing, your first submission, often in your home country. This alone gives you potential for worldwide protection, and buys you up to 30 months to decide where to expand it.

For startups on a tight budget, countries like Sweden and the UK offer some of the lowest-cost priority filings. From there, you can go global via the PCT (Patent Cooperation Treaty) when you're ready.

And with newer, agile IP platforms like Lightbringer, that first filing can be done in as little as two weeks, a massive shift from the traditional 8–16 week slog.

Don’t Wait for “Later” — Later Is Usually Too Late

If you’ve solved a problem no one else has solved before, you’re ready to file. Don’t wait until the product is launched or until you’ve secured funding. The longer you wait, the higher the chance that someone else will solve, and file, it first.

And here’s the kicker: if they do, not only do you lose the patent... you may also lose the right to operate. Yes, they could stop you from selling your own tech.

Bottom Line…

The patent system rewards speed, not fairness.

If you're a startup founder, don’t make the mistake of treating patents like an afterthought. Your competitors, partners, or even customers might already be preparing filings.

File first. File fast. Then build from there.
Because remember: in the patent game, there is no second place.

OLA WASSVIK

CCO and Co-founder of Lightbringer

EXPERT INSIGHTS: First to file wins