Like so many entrepreneurs, husband and wife team Will Wang and Michelle Li developed Leafi Home to solve a challenge they faced in their own lives.
Living in a three-story townhouse with a newborn baby, Michelle found herself walking up and down the stairs multiple times a day with their son, opening and closing all the blinds in the house. The pair thought to themselves, “there must be an easier way to bring light into our home.”
After researching the market, they found that the only automated blinds solutions were either very high or very low end. With backgrounds in business, finance, and engineering supply chain, Will and Michelle set out to build a solution themselves.
During his parental leave, Will conducted three months of in-depth market research and built a rough prototype which the pair tried out with dozens of their friends. After confirming that there was a market out there for their solution, Will quit his six-figure job and the pair turned Leafi Home into their full-time work.
We met with Michelle to discuss how the duo learned about AccelerateIP and to hear more about their experience in Stream 3.
At what point did you realize you needed IP support?
We knew that we didn’t want our product to be just a gadget—we wanted something sleek and visually appealing that was also backed by solid technology and functionality. We immediately understood that we’d need IP to protect us from copycats in low-cost regions.
We applied our first trademark in the U.S. a year into building; that was for the brand name. As we finalized the technology, we started applying for provisional patents back in 2021, which we then converted into a PCT patent and eventually a full patent. It’s been a multi-year journey.
How did you hear about AccelerateIP?
We heard about the program through New Ventures BC.
We were one of the top 25 companies in the New Ventures BC competition in 2023.
We also heard about it through the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC IRAP), as we have a close relationship with them.
You went through Stream 3, the funding program. Can you tell us about what the funding was used for?
We used it for a number of things. On the trademark side, we were able to file for a number of trademarks in the U.S., Canada, and the European Union. The funding helped cover the registration fees as well as the legal fees.
We also used the funding for our full patent application in the U.S. and Canada. This is the only grant we found that would help to pay for the filing fee, so it was incredibly helpful.
What difference has the program made in your business?
It accelerated the execution of our IP strategy. We understood quite a bit already—what we needed and how to get there.
As a startup, there are a lot of priorities and costs to balance—staffing, the technology, R&D. You really have to think about how you can make your funding work as hard as possible and how you can minimize costs. Without the AccelerateIP program, we would’ve had to make some tough decisions about where to apply for trademarks and patents.
Thanks to AccelerateIP, we were able to register in both Canada and the U.S., which we envision as being our two primary markets. Now we don’t have to worry about someone using our name or taking advantage of our technology.
What would you tell other entrepreneurs considering AccelerateIP?
I would tell them that it’s a great program that can help educate them on IP strategy and then help execute that strategy. Most entrepreneurs don’t have that legal background and there’s a lot to learn on very important topics. AccelerateIP really helps on that front.
By immersing themselves in the program and investing the time and energy, entrepreneurs can really learn a lot of the essential elements that will help protect their businesses.
