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The original was posted on /r/nostupidquestions by /u/ChuckItOver on 2023-08-25 15:58:47+00:00.
I have an idea which I think is a winner, in the domain of generating energy from ocean waves. There are other wave energy converters but none of them are "the" one to harness energy from ocean waves, and I think I've found "the" one.
If this is true, then it's a huge deal. If it isn't true, it won't necessarily be obvious right away. That associated risk with an invention is the reason why people get patents and then develop models for hopefully low costs, and then fight the battles over ownership and unobviousness later when it has been proven to be a winner.
I don't have a patent yet - I'm employed right now with a contract which says my company owns everything I do. If I wanted to get a patent I'd either have to ask permission from my company (who knows, might lead to legal troubles), or quit my job (not desirable) and say that I came up with the idea after I quit.
But what if I want to sell the idea before going through all of that? Is there a way to navigate all of this with just NDAs? Can I go to an investment group and ask them to buy my idea for big bucks without a patent? If I'm willing to sell it for 1% of its actual value surely there has to be a way to do this.