Ludovic COPERE

Sony Innovation Fund is the venture capital arm of Sony Corporation and is dedicated to investing in and engaging with promising early-stage & growth-stage start-ups.

Beyond investment, our mission is to provide resources such as access to the broader Sony world and its global network, as well as collaborate with startups to:
• Foster business creation in related lines of business and new areas of interest to Sony
• Catalyze a talented and passionate team
• Develop innovative and scalable technology
• Explore new and emerging ecosystems

Creating and achieving mid- and long-term strategy through strategic partnerships with & investments into innovative start-ups.

Focusing on disruptive ecosystems and highly-impacting fields for Sony, notably:
• Artificial Intelligence (AI)
• Automotive (Car Connectivity, Autonomous Driving, ADAS, V2V/V2I, Heads-up Displays...)
• Smart Machines (Drones/UAVs, Robotics, Factory/Industrial Automation...)
• Financial Technologies (FinTech)
• Insurance Technologies (InsurTech)
• Education Technologies (EdTech)
• Agriculture Technologies (AgTech)
• Security (DRM, Biometrics, Bitcoin & Blockchain...)
• Imaging (Semiconductors, Materials, Software/Cloud processing...)
• Entertainment (Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), 3D Printing, Toys & Transmedia...)
• Telecommunications (5G/beyond LTE, Mesh Networking, SDN, NFV...)


Working closely with business units spanning the entire Sony Group portfolio to identify opportunities, source deals, drive evaluations and shape investment/partnership/collaboration use-cases.

Identifying & analyzing emerging and new business trends, innovation as well as Intellectual Property (IP) opportunities.

Optimizing Offensive and Defensive IP portfolio strategies (cross-licensing, patent-pooling, litigation...) together with IP teams in US, Japan, Europe and China.

Fueling IP footprint through front-line negotiation in key areas (e.g. LTE, DRM, Connected Vehicles, Semiconductors).

Acting as window function for IP and software-related license matters for next-generation connected consumer devices. Highlights include evaluation of mid/long-term licensing opportunities of Sony's portfolio in unexplored areas and internal seeding of disruptive trends in Cloud/online services.

Empowering group-wide standardization, 3rd-party lobbying and technology promotion around Sony’s core electronics assets. Involvement in multiple on-going IP assertion initiatives or defense negotiations.

Accelerated IP licensing, involving in tactical deal negotiations together with M&A and Legal teams.

Structured directions and transversal brainstorming on software platforms, cloud computing and next wave B2B/B2C services.

Bridged media-related activities in Music and Pictures businesses with long-tail technology, start-up and ecosystem trends.

Catalyzed corporate projects (e.g. advisory board, business risk continuity…) and other special initiatives to Top management.

Supported Sony’s pro-active IP strategy by fostering future IP execution, such as on wireless and connected TV.

Identified next target areas and technologies for IP filling, acquisition, and joint ventures to maximize new revenue generation.

Reinforced research outcomes, mid or long-term opportunity assessments and valuations at worldwide, regional and local levels.

Managed mid-term intelligence, with overall responsibility for fixed & mobile broadband strategies across all Europe.

Oversaw techno-economic analysis platform on network infrastructures, service developments, and key players’ profiles.

Researched emerging disruptions such as LTE, femtocells, Web 3.0, semantics, augmented reality and cloud gaming.

Evangelized to senior management (e.g. Tokyo HQ, Business Groups, Corporate R&D, Product Planning).

Analyzed Broadcast (Digital TV, HD) and Broadband (IPTV, Catch-up TV, mobile TV) innovations in Western Europe.

Synthesized the technological, regulatory, market and competition trends, and their transversal impact for Sony.

Developed joint use-cases with key European telecommunications operators, broadcasters and start-ups.

Consolidated the business model for a multi-channel IPTV/Video on Demand portal and virtual shopping center.

Reported technology and strategy choices for delivering A/V entertainment to home users through Fiber-to-the-Home.

Benchmarked e-Learning platforms and content aggregation tools to optimize the corporate university’s offering.

Deployed an open collaboration module and integrated advanced Key Performance Indicators.

Supervised large-scale summer events as part of an international team (American and Japanese).

Conducted enhancements for the renowned center’s infrastructures.