With over three decades of industrial experience and more than 50 globally granted patents, Dr. Praful Ramachandra Naik has worked across pharmaceuticals, medical devices, advanced materials, sanitation technologies and clean-tech innovations. Founder of Prashak Techno Enterprises and CTO of Amida Cleantech, Naik has spent much of his career translating ideas into commercially viable technologies while advocating for innovation with societal impact. In this conversation, he shares his views on intellectual property, India's innovation culture, clean technology and the future of sustainable innovation.
Q. You hold one of the rare distinctions of having more than 50 patents to your name. What makes an idea patent-worthy?
There are multiple aspects involved in transforming an idea into intellectual property. Every idea need not become intellectual property. However, some ideas have tremendous capability for proliferation and capitalization. If such ideas are protected through patents, they become more meaningful and valuable.
Intellectual property is not only about commercialization. It also ensures that the originality of an idea remains protected. If I have created an idea and protected it through a patent, then for a certain period anybody using it has to follow that framework. It gives you rights and protection, which is valuable.
Many ideas remain proprietary because of the fear of duplication. But in my view, the more you disclose through a robust patent specification, the stronger the protection becomes.
A patent office also looks for novelty and inventive steps. Those are critical factors. If an innovation addresses a specific need and creates value—even for a small community—it is still a valuable idea.
Q. India has produced many innovators, yet we often hear that the country has not created enough globally dominant products. Why do you think that is?
One of the biggest reasons is our culture.India has a culture of sharing and giving. Knowledge has traditionally been shared rather than commercialized. Intellectual property, on the other hand, is largely about value creation and capitalization.
In many Western countries, the moment an idea is created, efforts begin to protect it and commercialize it. That has been one major gap in India.
The second reason is the ecosystem. Countries like the United States have a robust ecosystem that supports innovation and intellectual property. IP is valued because it can be enforced and monetized effectively.
I remember sharing a stage with a senior intellectual property leader from Pfizer. He gave an interesting example. In India, a child may borrow a game from a friend and ask his father to install it. In the US, a child is more likely to ask his father to buy it. That difference reflects how intellectual property is perceived.
Q. How do you decide which problems are worth spending years solving?
Today, there is a tendency to evaluate every idea through a material lens—whether it can become a billion-dollar opportunity.
I don't agree with that approach. Every idea has value. If it can create a societal impact, if it can touch even a single life positively, it is worth pursuing. Innovation should not be judged solely by the amount of money it can generate.
Many innovators are emotionally attached to their ideas, and rightly so. If an idea can benefit society or address a meaningful challenge, it deserves attention irrespective of its commercial scale.
Q. What is harder: creating technology or commercializing it?
Both are equally challenging. The entrepreneur often believes commercialization is harder and that creating technology is relatively straightforward. The inventor, meanwhile, believes idea generation and technology development require immense creativity and effort.
From my perspective, both have their own challenges and both are equally important.
Today, commercialization has become more difficult because there are so many competing products and technologies. Making people recognize the value of a new product in a crowded marketplace is not easy.
At the same time, creating meaningful innovation is also becoming increasingly challenging.
Q. Among all the innovations you have worked on, which one are you most proud of?
One of the most valuable experiences from my early career involved working with a 50-year-old obsolete process that had been meticulously documented by a multinational organization.
I was able to retrieve that documentation and use it to create a completely different product for a specific application.
What stayed with me was the importance of documentation. The fact that a document from 50 years earlier could be retrieved and used so effectively demonstrated the power of preserving knowledge.
Even today, I make it a point to document ideas immediately. Thoughts are abstract and can disappear quickly. If you don't capture them, you may never recover them.
Q. Is India's innovation challenge a talent problem, a capital problem or a mindset problem?
It is definitely not a talent problem. India has immense talent. You can see small innovations everywhere, including on the streets and in rural communities. Some grassroots innovations are truly remarkable.
The bigger challenge is mindset. We often seek immediate returns. We want innovations to monetize quickly. In contrast, mature innovation ecosystems think much further ahead and are willing to invest over long periods.
We need greater patience and a longer-term perspective. Talent is abundant in India. The challenge lies in how we nurture, support and scale that talent.
Q. Tell us about the work happening at Amida Cleantech.
The journey began around 2012 when our Chairman, Dr. Dharamveer Kapoor, wanted to explore solutions that could address pollution.
We spent several years developing the technology. One of our early breakthroughs came when our solution was shortlisted by French Railways under a global initiative. We were the only non-European technology selected.
After extensive evaluation at a Paris Metro station and railway station, the technology performed exceptionally well across multiple parameters.
Today, we have patents granted in India, the United States and Europe, among other markets.
The technology focuses on air purification and has applications across enclosed, semi-enclosed and open spaces. One of our prestigious projects was at Kashi Vishwanath Dham, where the technology was deployed to address air quality challenges arising from nearby cremation activities. We continue to innovate and expand the technology for diverse applications.
Q. What advice would you give young founders chasing the next big idea?
I would advise them not to evaluate ideas only through the lens of commercial outcomes.
Many people abandon ideas because they believe they will not generate enough revenue. That is a mistake.
Inventors should remain emotionally connected to the societal impact of their ideas. If an idea can help communities and address meaningful challenges, it deserves attention.
Commercial success is important, but impact should remain the primary motivation.
Q. What will define India's next decade—AI, clean-tech, biotech or something else?
In my view, human health and well-being will remain the central theme.
Artificial intelligence will certainly play a major role. Sustainability will also become increasingly important because climate change and environmental challenges are becoming more significant.
Any innovation that improves sustainability while contributing to human health and well-being will create substantial value.
That is where I see the greatest opportunities emerging over the next decade.
Q. Can modern science and ancient wisdom work together to address some of humanity's biggest health challenges?
One area that remains underestimated is nature. My background is in pharmaceutical sciences and modern medicine, but I believe nature holds immense potential for addressing many of the health challenges facing humanity today.
There are solutions within nature that may help address conditions that continue to challenge modern healthcare systems. If we combine scientific rigor with traditional knowledge and natural resources, there could be significant benefits for human health and well-being.
We have moved away from nature in many ways. Going back to it and understanding its potential could create meaningful value in the years ahead.
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