During the first week of September 2025, Universidad del Valle de Guatemala (UVG) hosted Carlos Guzmán Machuca, a Mexican lawyer specializing in intellectual property (IP) and strategic innovation management. His visit from September 1 to 5 included academic exchanges, practical workshops, and discussions with students, faculty, and entrepreneurs at the university.
The main goal of Machuca’s visit was to strengthen institutional and entrepreneurial capacities regarding IP. The activities were organized by UVG’s Office of Technology Transfer (OTT), which supports science- and technology-based projects. Throughout the week, Machuca shared his expertise on preparing documentation for IP protection applications, patent searches, one-on-one advisory sessions with entrepreneurs, implementing IP policies, and key issues for developing impactful projects.
The week began with a talk for students in the Biochemistry and Microbiology program about how scientific research can be protected and transferred to society through intellectual property. Machuca also led a specialized course on patentability in collaboration with UVG Lifelong Learning. This session covered technical and legal requirements for registering inventions.
A rapid patent search course was held for D-Risking program entrepreneurs and UVG staff taking specialized IP courses. A working lunch at Aeromatic focused on strategies for freedom to operate and drafting utility model applications.
Later that day, a discussion titled “The role of intellectual property in the entrepreneur’s journey” allowed Machuca to speak directly with young innovators about challenges related to protecting and commercializing their developments. During this event he stated: “Innovating is not just creating something new; it is ensuring that knowledge translates into value for its creator and society.”
Machuca provided technical follow-up on D-Risking projects such as AhauX by reviewing freedom-to-operate studies and protection strategies. He continued his patentability course with another practical session analyzing real university inventions.
The agenda concluded with meetings connecting various academic communities. One session addressed molecular biotechnology students on the importance of IP in developing new biotechnological products. Another session answered questions from D-Risking cohort 2 entrepreneurs about intangible asset protection and incorporating IP into business strategies early in their ventures.
Machuca emphasized the importance of protecting inventions as a way to safeguard effort, creativity, and investment by innovators. He also highlighted the need for universities to form teams capable of evaluating and managing IP throughout research and entrepreneurship processes.
Participants described an open dialogue environment where cases, challenges, and opportunities were discussed. Strengthening skills in intellectual property was identified as essential for UVG’s continued leadership in regional innovation and technology transfer.
According to UVG representatives, this collaboration reinforced their commitment to promoting responsible innovation—integrating knowledge creation, professional ethics, and research result protection within the institution.
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