Raj V. Abhyanker
Partner
raj@rajpatent.com
Founding partner Raj Abhyanker is an internet entrepreneur and an attorney. Raj is the co-founder and former CEO of a number of successful Internet companies including the DealMap (acquired by Google, Inc.), Trademarkia (one of the largest legal websites on the Internet), MacInsider (acquired by Ziff Davis), and AOLClassifieds (acquired by AOL).
Raj is the lead inventor on more than 20 issued patents or patent applications owned by Google, Inc. on geo-spatial and software technologies, many of which are embodied in Google Maps, Google Product Search, and Google +, including ones covering “businesses and people around you”, pushpin placement and movement, user generated search rankings, geospatial fundraising, and character expression in a geospatial environment.
In addition to technology startups, Raj is also a co-founder of a restaurant (Bonjour Sandwiches & Crepes in Cupertino CA), a video production company (Spiral Moon Media), a computer animation company (Clay Pixel Studios), and a restaurant bidding startup (EatBid).
Raj is also the founding partner of Raj Abhyanker P.C., a leading international law firm with offices in Silicon Valley, Paris France, Beijing China, and Bangaluru India with more than 60 attorneys worldwide. Raj’s firm is the #1 ranked trademark law firm in the world in years 2010 and 2011, according to recent studies by Trademark Insider and World Trademark Review. Raj Abhyanker P.C.’s clients include governments around the world, venture backed startups, multinational corporations, elite institutions, universities, celebrities, movie studios, venture capital firms, and private equity institutions. Raj Abhyanker P.C. has also represented a number of leading technology companies with intellectual property matters including NVIDIA, General Electric, Texas Instruments, NetApp, LSI Logic, EMC, VMWare and others.
Raj is a Charter Member of the TiE Silicon Valley chapter, and is an active angel investor in electric battery and near field communication technologies. Raj has been an invited advisor to the White House, the Executive Office of the President Barack Obama, Office of Science & Technology Policy on internet strategy, and patent and trademark legislation, implementation and policy.
In his early career, Raj worked as an electrical engineer and business executive for a number of companies including Lockheed Martin, Hewlett-Packard, and Juniper Networks (where he was the Director of Supply Chain).
Raj is a graduate of Arizona State University, where he earned a J.D., an M.B.A., and a B.S. in Electrical Engineering. He studied toward a Master’s in Engineering at Stanford University, where he co-founded the social network Fatdoor, Inc/The Deal Map (acquired by Google, Inc. in July 2011). Raj served as the CEO of Fatdoor, Inc., and raised both the Series A and Series B venture financing for the company, prior to the company’s acquisition by Google, Inc. In addition, Raj helped to build relationships with all Strategic Advisors including Dr. Rajiv Motwani and Hector Garcia Molina from Stanford’s Computer Science department.
Raj is a registered U.S. patent attorney and a member of the California State Bar.