Ric Richardson discusses the contrasting skills required to invent and run a company

Ric Richardson discusses the contrasting skills required to invent and run a company

Ric Richardson discusses the contrasting skills required to invent and run a company

0:00/1:34

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Ric Richardson is an Australian inventor who first came to prominence as a result of his invention of Software Activation, a technique used in software anti-piracy. Ric founded the Uniloc Company and entered an agreement with IBM to commercialise the invention, which Ric says has now been used on two and a half billion computers globally. In 2011 a US court awarded Uniloc $388 million in damages after Microsoft was found to have infringed on Ric’s patent, and the subsequent publicity surrounding the case led to the TV program Australian Story creating an episode covering the trial. In his conversation with Adam, Ric discusses the surge of support he received after the Australian Story episode was watched by 2 million people, and what he sees as the contrasting skills and personalities needed for creating an invention, and running a company.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Day One Podcast

00:29 Meet Ric Richardson

00:42 Ric's Current Projects

01:19 Discussing the Importance of Self-Awareness

02:56 The Difference Between Problem Solving and Business Management

05:20 The Role of Inventors in Business

07:08 Ric's Experience with Patents

09:05 The Impact of Australian Culture on Innovation

10:27 Starting Unilock in 1992

12:13 Support from Friends and Family

13:01 The Importance of Patents for Inventors

14:04 The Activation Technology Invention

17:04 Getting Involved with IBM

20:09 Differences Between Australian and US Business Landscapes

25:39 Returning to Australia and Engaging with the Startup Ecosystem

30:12 The Importance of Self-Awareness for Founders

32:29 Advice for New Inventors and Founders

39:01 Conclusion and Closing Remarks

Resources

Ric on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ric_RichardsonRic on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ricricho/

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Day One® is a registered trademark of W2D1 Media Pty Ltd. All rights reserved. © 2026 W2D1 Media Pty Ltd.