The $50K budget
At seed stage, most founders spend IP dollars badly. A pragmatic allocation: $8K on a targeted prior-art search around your core claim, $18K on one high-quality provisional (not three mediocre ones), $6K on a trademark search and filing for the name you actually plan to keep, and $18K held in reserve for PCT conversion 10 months later.
What to publish
Publish the parts of your work that are commodity engineering and non-differentiating. It builds credibility, attracts talent, and pre-empts competitors from patenting around you. Do not publish the specific mechanism that makes your product work — file first.
