KDB

Intellectual Property Law Serviceskdwfirm.com

KDB (operating as KDW Firm PLLC) is a Cary, North Carolina-based intellectual property law firm providing patent prosecution, IP licensing, trademark, and patent invalidation services to sophisticated clients across computer, mechanical/electrical, and life sciences industries.

Company typePrivate
Founded2003
HeadquartersCary, United States
Headcount11–50
GTM typeB2B
OfferingServices

What KDB does

KDB appears in the input data as an entity associated with KDW Firm PLLC, a private intellectual property law firm headquartered in Cary, North Carolina, founded in 2003 by John Kacvinsky. The firm operates a four-service IP practice covering patent prosecution and management, diligence/licensing/opinions, trademark and copyright law, and patent invalidation proceedings. It serves sophisticated clients with complex IP needs across three vertical industries: Computer & Information Technology, Mechanical & Electrical, and Chemistry & Life Sciences.

KDW differentiates via a hybrid talent model: 27 attorneys on staff, over one-third of whom previously served as in-house counsel at major companies, complemented by technical and scientific credentials that allow the firm to engage deeply with the underlying technology of client portfolios. The firm's go-to-market relies on referral-driven, relationship-based engagement typical of legal services; no pricing or customer concentration data is publicly disclosed.

The firm expanded its virtual delivery model across 2023-2025 to include lawyers across the United States while retaining its single Cary physical office, broadening addressable talent and client reach without proportionate fixed-cost expansion. Separately, the entity labeled KDB participated as a minority investor in FriendliAI's $20 million seed extension round on 2025-08-28, indicating capital deployment outside the core law firm practice. No revenue, funding, or AI capability disclosures are available for the firm.

KDB firmographics

Firmographics

Name: KDB
Legal name: KDW Firm PLLC
Website: https://kdwfirm.com
Company type: Private
Founded year: 2003
Operating status: Operating
Headcount range: 11–50 employees
Short description: KDB (operating as KDW Firm PLLC) is a Cary, North Carolina-based intellectual property law firm providing patent prosecution, IP licensing, trademark, and patent invalidation services to sophisticated clients across computer, mechanical/electrical, and life sciences industries.
Ownership category
akta.pro rank

Where KDB is headquartered

Location

Headquarters

HQ city: Cary
HQ country: United States
HQ region: North America

Markets served

KDB business model

Business model

GTM type: B2B
Offering type: Services
Cost components: Personnel, Operations

KDB product offering

Product offering

Core offering

KDW Firm PLLC (referred to in the source as KDB) is an intellectual property law firm that provides patent prosecution, trademark and copyright registration, patent invalidation, and IP licensing services. Its attorneys serve clients with technical inventions and IP assets in computer/IT, mechanical/electrical, and chemistry/life sciences fields.

Product overview

KDW Firm PLLC offers a unified suite of intellectual property legal services across four core areas: Patent & Prosecution Management, Diligence Licensing & Opinions, Trademark & Copyrights, and Patent Invalidation Proceedings. The firm specializes in serving clients across three primary industries: Computer & Information Technology, Mechanical & Electrical, and Chemistry & Life Sciences. Services are delivered by a team of attorneys with backgrounds in science, engineering, and technology industries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

Patent Prosecution Drafting, filing, and prosecuting patent applications before the relevant patent offices on behalf of corporate clients with technical inventions.

Companies that use KDB

Customer profile

Ideal customer profiles1 record

KDB technology and API

Technology

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API: No
API docs
API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

KDB partnerships and signals

Strategic signal

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

KDB competitors and assessment

Company assessment

Direct peers

Fish & Richardson: Large US IP specialty law firm focused on patent prosecution, licensing, and litigation across technology and life sciences. Directly comparable to KDW as a technology-focused IP boutique with similar service breadth.
Finnegan: Premier IP law firm with deep patent prosecution, licensing, and PTAB practices across electrical, mechanical, software, and life sciences. Directly comparable on IP service mix and technology vertical focus.
Knobbe Martens: West Coast–headquartered IP boutique covering mechanical, electrical, software, and biotech patent work. Closely comparable as a mid-to-large IP specialty firm with prosecution and licensing depth.
Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox: Specialty IP firm known for patent prosecution and PTAB proceedings, particularly in biotech, software, and electrical technologies. Directly comparable on patent prosecution and invalidation services.
Wolf, Greenfield & Sacks: Boutique IP law firm serving technology and life sciences clients with patent prosecution, licensing, and opinions. Closely comparable specialty IP competitor.
Cantor Colburn: Large IP-only law firm with patent prosecution, licensing, and trademark practices across chemistry, mechanical, and electrical arts. Comparable specialty IP peer.
McAndrews, Held & Malloy: Mid-sized IP boutique focused on patent prosecution, licensing, and litigation across high-tech and life sciences verticals. Comparable size and specialization to KDW.
Oblon, McClelland, Maier & Neustadt: IP-focused law firm offering patent prosecution, licensing, and IP transactions across electrical, mechanical, and chemical technologies. Comparable boutique IP competitor.

Broad incumbents

Cooley LLP: Large full-service law firm with a substantial technology-focused IP practice covering prosecution, licensing, and litigation. Competes for the same sophisticated tech clients but as part of a much broader corporate practice.
Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati: Premier tech and life sciences law firm with significant IP licensing and patent practice. Competes at the high end of the IP services market KDW targets but with a much larger, diversified platform.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

KDB financial estimates

Financial estimate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

KDB leadership team

Management profile

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

KDB funding detail

Funding detail

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

KDB M&A and investment

M&A and investment

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about KDB

What does KDB do?

Is KDB a public or private company?

KDB is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.

When was KDB founded?

KDB was founded in 2003. It employs 11 to 50 people.

Where is KDB based?

KDB is headquartered in Cary, United States, in the North America region.

Who are KDB's main competitors?

Direct peers on record are Fish & Richardson, Finnegan, Knobbe Martens, Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox, Wolf, Greenfield & Sacks, Cantor Colburn, McAndrews, Held & Malloy and Oblon, McClelland, Maier & Neustadt. Broad incumbents are Cooley LLP and Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati.

Does KDB have an API?

No public API is recorded for KDB.