Our Team – Meet SIM IP’s Expert IP Investment Team

Erich Spangenberg

Co-Founder, Chief Executive Officer & Member of Management Committee

Erich has served as Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of SIM IP since its founding and is also a member of the firm’s Management and Investment Committees. He is a recognized industry luminary in the patent business having acted as a principal in over $700 million of IP licensing transactions and over $1.5 billion of IP financing transactions and as an advisor in over $2 billion of IP licensing and financing transactions. Erich started his career as a corporate lawyer (working for Jones Day), then as an investment banker (having held positions at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette) and, before launching his entrepreneurial endeavors, worked in telecommunications and distressed debt.

Erich was a Periclean Scholar at Skidmore College where he earned his BA, a Distinguished Graduate with an M.Sc. from The London School of Economics and was on Law Review at Case Western Reserve University, where he earned his JD and is also on the board of SIM.

David Kutcher

Co-Founder, Chief Financial Officer & Member of Management Committee

David has served as the Chief Financial Officer and Head of IP Investments of SIM IP since its founding and is also a member of the firm’s Management and Investment Committees. David has been an investor for more than 14 years, across a variety of strategies, stages and industries with a number of successful exits, including Vroom (Nasdaq: VRM), Immunome (Nasdaq: IMNM) and Montrose Environmental (NYSE: MEG). Portfolio companies which he was involved with went on to raise in excess of $2 billion and includes five unicorns. He also has two children, Winston and Elizabeth, and is often found at one of their many events, playing tennis, or walking Jack, a scruffy terrier-mix.

David is also a member of SIM IP's Board of Directors, the Board of SIM Acquisition Corp. I and holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of the South (Sewanee) and a JD from Samford University (Cumberland).

Yasser Zaghloul

Managing Director and Chief Technology Officer

Yasser serves as Managing Director and Chief Technology Officer at SIM IP, focusing on technical analysis and patent strategy. Prior to joining SIM IP, he served as a professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, a licensed patent practitioner at a variety of top law firms and as the Director of Intellectual Property at Samsung Semiconductor. As a senior leader, Yasser pioneered development of various legal and filing strategies to increase leverageable assets, led technical analysis for high-profile ($100M+) cross-licensing deals and litigations, and guided non-infringement and invalidity efforts at various stages of contentions. Throughout his career Yasser amassed substantial experience, driven tangible impact, and demonstrated a strong track record of success in both patent prosecution as well as litigation support and management.

Yasser holds a doctorate degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology and his research and technical areas of expertise span the fields of semiconductors, optics, telecommunications, software and artificial intelligence.

Adi Sidapara

Chief Strategy Officer

Adi is Chief Strategy Officer at SIM IP. He is the Founder and former Chief Executive Officer of Garden, a patent intelligence platform acquired by SIM IP to enhance its ability to deliver scalable, technology-enabled IP strategy.

He led the development and market adoption of systems used by enterprise IP owners and legal teams to evaluate large patent portfolios, support high-stakes litigation, and inform enforcement and prosecution strategies. Adi is a trusted partner to in-house counsel, outside law firms, and technology leaders, known for translating complex patent data into clear strategic direction and execution.

Adi holds a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from Stanford University.

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Arvin Patel

Managing Director

Arvin is a Managing Director at SIM IP. He is a seasoned intellectual property executive recognized as one of the industry’s top dealmakers, having led multi-billion-dollar patent licensing and monetization programs across global markets. Prior to joining SIM IP, He served as Chief Licensing Officer at Nokia, Chief Operating Officer at Intellectual Ventures, and Chief Intellectual Property Officer at TiVo, where he oversaw global licensing, litigation, and innovation strategy.

Arvin holds a B.A. in Legal Studies from the University of California, Berkeley, a J.D. from California Western School of Law, and executive certifications from Harvard Law School in advanced negotiations. He is also an Adjunct Professor at UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law and serves on the Board of Directors at the UCLA Technology Development Group.

Cheryl Milone

Managing Director and Global IP Strategy Officer

Ellen Scordino

Managing Director

Ellen is a Managing Director at SIM IP, specializing in intellectual property licensing, investment, financing, and monetization. Prior to joining SIM IP, she was a partner at an AMLAW 50 firm, focusing on IP matters across a range of industries, including consumer goods, life sciences, and AI-driven technologies. She is also at the forefront of AI/ML, advising clients on how to anticipate, understand, and mitigate IP risks.

Ellen is a member of the Board of Directors of the Mental Health Collaborative, a nonprofit focused on mental health literacy.

Ellen holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Trinity College in Hartford, CT, and a JD from Fordham University School of Law.

Jennifer Burdman

Managing Director

Jennifer is a Managing Director at SIM IP, specializing in intellectual property financing, investment, and monetization. Jennifer is also a member of the firm’s Investment Committee. She has been an executive within biotechnology companies and spent over 18 years in private practice as a patent litigator; she also brings extensive experience in developing and implementing IP strategies.

Jennifer holds a bachelors in biochemistry and molecular biology from Dartmouth College and a JD from Fordham University.

Justin Mack

Chief Technology Officer - SIM AI

Justin is Chief Technology Officer of SIM AI. He co-founded Garden and served as Chief Technology Officer, where he led the technical vision and engineering of an AI-driven patent intelligence platform built for fast, high-precision patent diligence, prior-art discovery, and related IP workflows.

He developed proprietary AI search and reasoning-driven systems designed to transform complex patent and technical data into actionable insights for IP teams.

Justin is a Harvard College graduate and computer scientist with a focus on high-performance computing and machine learning research.

Cali Boustani

Director

Cali Boustani is a Director at SIM IP and one of its earliest employees. She focuses on deal coordination, financial analysis, and life sciences.

Prior to SIM IP, she conducted neuropharmacology research at UCSD, Stanford, and MIT, and has been published in Science.

Cali holds a Master of Science in Biotechnology and Economics from Brown University.

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Lingga Alithia

Director

Michael Schulze

Director

Michael Schulze is Director of IP Operations at SIM IP, where he leads the firm’s enterprise IP operations, analytics, and diligence infrastructure supporting high-value licensing, acquisition, and enforcement strategies. He designs and governs AI-driven screening, portfolio analytics, and structured intake frameworks that bring repeatability, defensibility, and scale to SIM IP’s monetization platform.

Michael is a USPTO-registered Patent Agent and holds certifications as a Project Management Professional (PMP), Lean Six Sigma Black Belt, and Professional Scrum Master. He brings a unique blend of intellectual property, technology operations, and analytics leadership, strengthening SIM IP’s ability to modernize LegalTech workflows and maximize portfolio value.

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Mohamed Elgeneidy

Director

Mohamed is a Director at SIM IP, focused on strategic finance. Prior to joining SIM IP, he worked in various asset classes in strategy and investment roles. Mohamed’s experience ranges from complex financial modeling for large-scale assets and portfolios, strategic capital allocation, and investment due diligence.

Mohamed holds a bachelor’s in Economics from the Georgia Institute of Technology and is a CFA Charterholder.

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Pioneers and global leaders in IP and investments