Pattern
Commercial discovery and IP optionality checklist
Plan customer learning, demonstrations, and publication without casually surrendering useful options. The checklist places a review before pilots, demos, papers, repositories, and public launches, and favors outcome, problem, and workflow questions that need little technical disclosure. Counsel should decide disclosure and filing consequences.
Before contact
Record what can be discussed, what mechanism should remain private, filing status, audience, purpose, and responsible reviewer.
Learn
Prefer outcome, problem, burden, buying, and workflow questions when technical disclosure adds little to the learning.
Gate
Place review before pilots, demos, papers, repositories, technical documents, conferences, and public launches.
Boundary
Counsel should decide disclosure and filing consequences in the relevant jurisdictions.