Dear Colleagues,
I write from the Technology Licensing Office (TLO) to share with you what will be an annual reminder: If you engage in research, especially, but not only, federally funded research, you have an obligation to disclose to the TLO any new intellectual property (IP) arising from the work. Below, please find guidance and information about a training session being offered this fall.
Timely, complete disclosure is a shared responsibility across faculty, postdocs, students, research staff, and administrators. Our goal is simple: protect MIT's rights, meet sponsor obligations, and keep your publication and release timelines on schedule.
Four things to keep in mind
Disclose early, ideally 6–8 weeks before public release. Submit your disclosure before manuscript submission, pre-prints, conference abstracts, thesis defenses, or public code repositories. Sharing to the public before disclosing to the TLO can affect patent rights, with the possibility of forfeiture. Early disclosure lets us secure protection and check our obligations to sponsors without slowing you down.
Disclose all inventive outputs — not just patentable ones. Inventions, software code (including code intended to be released open source), algorithms, tangible research property and materials, and certain know-how and datasets all require institutional disclosure. Disclosures must be submitted through the Research@MIT app. If you have questions about what should be disclosed, review our resources and contacts below.
Include complete funding-source information at disclosure. Under the Bayh-Dole Act, MIT must report each subject invention to the federal funding agency. MIT often has obligations to other sponsors as well. Providing complete award numbers and sponsor details up front helps us report accurately and on time.
Identify outside collaborators and/or co-inventors. Co-inventors and co-authors from other institutions, as well as visiting researchers, subcontractors, and any other collaborators affect ownership and MIT’s obligations. All contributors to the IP should be named, including non-MIT contributors.
Fall Training: Federal IP & Disclosures 101
This one-hour session will offer a practical walk-through of the disclosure process, federal reporting timelines, and sponsor compliance for researchers and administrators.
When: Tuesday, November 17, 2026, 4:00–5:00 p.m.
Format: Hybrid: In person or Zoom. A recording will be made available for those unable to attend the live session.
Location: 255 Main Street, NE18-933, 9th Floor Kendall Room
Register here
Additional Resources
For a quick intro to the TLO, refer to this one-page overview or visit the TLO website, with resources such as How to Submit a Disclosure; Software & Open Source Information; Connect with a Licensing Officer; and Office Hours Sign Up.
Thank you for partnering with us to protect MIT's research and uphold our commitments to sponsors. If you have any questions, please contact us at tlo@mit.edu.
Sincerely,
Lesley Millar-Nicholson
Executive Director, Technology Licensing Office