- intellectual property | small and medium-sized enterprises | artificial intelligence
- Wednesday 21 January 2026, 10:00 - 12:00 (CET)
Programme
- 21 Jan 2026, 10:00 - 12:00 (CET)Programme
Welcoming (10:00 - 10:05)
Simon CHEETHAM (International IP SME Helpdesk)
Introduction (10:05 - 10:20)
Krzysztof NICHCZYNSKI (DG CNECT), 1 speaker TBC.
The IP Helpdesk: your key strategic ally for EU SMEs going international (10:20 - 10:30)
Claire FRITZ (European IP Helpdesk), Alessandra CAPRIGLIA (IP Helpdesk)
AI Act 101: Fast-Track to Compliance (10:30 – 10:45)
Elinor WAHAL (Legal and Policy Officer DG CNECT Unit A.2, European AI Office)
Software and AI meet IP: Case studies (10:45 – 11:25)
EU SMEs in the Software / AI sector
Moderator: César E. FERNANDEZ (International IP SME Helpdesk)
AI era: IP protection and compliance (11:25- 11:55)
Giovanna GIRARDI (LA, India IP SME HD), Elio DE TULLIO (China, SEA IP SME HD), Manuel SANCHEZ SALOM (European IP HD), Elinor WAHAL (AI Office)
Moderator: Simon CHEETHAM (International IP SME Helpdesk)
Closing remarks (11:55- 12:00)
Simon CHEETHAM (International IP SME Helpdesk)
Practical information
- When
- Wednesday 21 January 2026, 10:00 - 12:00 (CET)
- Languages
- English
Description
The Stakeholders Conference is the annual flagship event of the IP Helpdesk, this year in the framework of the Software and AI sectors.
The pace of innovation is accelerating worldwide, and organisations that succeed with AI and software gain a decisive competitive edge, making IP protection more crucial than ever. Because software and AI are inherently digital and global, companies deploying these technologies across borders must navigate a complex landscape of differing intellectual property regimes and enforcement systems.
The IP Helpdesk is an initiative of the European Commission to support SMEs to both protect and enforce their Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) worldwide, and also research teams involved in cross-border business and/or EU-funded research activities (European IP Helpdesk).
Through their different activities, the IP Helpdesk is contributing to raising awareness on IP matters when dealing with European and international markets (China, South-East Asia, Latin America, India, and Africa) while providing free information and services in the form of jargon-free, first-line, confidential advice on intellectual property and related issues, plus training, materials, and online resources.
This year, we have invited the European AI Office to give us its insights on AI compliance and to talk about the brand new AI Act Service Desk. The European AI Office is the centre of AI expertise across the EU, which promotes the development and deployment of AI solutions that benefit society and the economy.
Who is this webinar for?
Entrepreneurs, business professionals, and small and medium-sized enterprises working with software and AI, and seeking to expand their business in Europe and beyond.
Speakers
Event Moderator: Simon CHEETHAM Simon is the Team Leader of the China IPR SME Helpdesk. He is a China IPR Enforcement expert with over 30 years' experience in commercial investigations, due diligence, and IPR enforcement in China and internationally. He has lived and worked in China and South-East Asia for over 17 years. He is also the Managing Director of ERINYES INTERNATIONAL LTD |
Speaker: Krzysztof NICHCZYNSKI Krzysztof is a Legal and Policy Officer at the European Commission, working within DG CONNECT’s Copyright Unit. With a solid legal background and a career of almost 22 years in the national and the EU administration, he contributes in developing and delivering the European Commission’s policy in the area of copyright and related rights and in shaping the EU’s approach to copyright in the context of digital transformation. Before joining the European Commission in 2012, he had significant responsibilities as a civil servant and diplomat in the Polish public administration. |
Speaker: EISMEA representative TBC |
Speaker: Elinor WAHAL Elinor is Coordinator of Stakeholder Interaction at the European Commission’s AI Office, working in the AI Regulation and Compliance Unit. As an EU and International AI Governance Expert, Elinor contributes to the European Commission's Artificial intelligence policy development, its AI regulatory framework, as well as the European Union's international strategy for AI policy. |
Moderator of the case studies panel: César E. FERNÁNDEZ César is a Senior IP advisor at the Latin America and India IP SME Helpdesk, mainly as a training manager and impact assessment manager. He has been working for more than 10 years at the IP Helpdesk, since the creation of the Mercosur IPR Helpdesk. |
Speaker: Álvaro SÁEZ Álvaro is the CEO of the Spanish company HechicerIA. |
Speaker: David PINTO David is the CEO of the Spanish company EONSEA. |
| Speaker: SME TBC |
Speaker: Alessandra CAPRIGLIA Alessandra supervises the activities of the China IP SME Helpdesk, and has been involved in EU-funded project implementation since 2020. She previously lived and worked in Beijing, where she supported international cooperation initiatives involving Chinese and European stakeholders. |
Speaker: Claire FRITZ Claire is a Senior Innovation Manager at EURICE GmbH; Coordinator of the European IP Helpdesk, with long-standing involvement across the EC IP Helpdesk network. |
Speaker: Giovanna Paola GIRARDI Giovanna is a lawyer specializing in business law and intellectual property. Clients hire her to build strategies to protect their designs, patents and trademarks and also profit from them. Giovanna also lectures at various business schools Geneva Business School, EAE, Garrigues and collaborates in global and European to raise awareness of intellectual property rights as a competitive tool for SMEs. |
Speaker: Elio DE TULLIO Elio founded De Tullio & Partners Intellectual Property Attorneys in 2005 and currently acts as Managing Partner of De Tullio & Partners. He acts as trade mark attorney in the strategic assessment of IP protection and in prosecution and opposition processes at domestic and international level. |
Speaker: Manuel SÁNCHEZ SALOM Manuel is an Intellectual Property (IP) expert at the European IP Helpdesk, where he develops awareness‑raising materials, delivers IP training sessions and provides first‑line support on users IP questions. His work increasingly focuses on the IP implications of artificial intelligence (AI), including protection and exploitation of AI‑related assets in EU projects and SME business strategies. |