Welcome back to another week of Bells & Whistles!
As always, we’ve rounded up a mix of developments, opportunities, and thoughtful reads from across the IP world along with a Bell of the Week that’s well worth revisiting.
Bell of the Week: Sarai’s FLOSS Initiative
This week’s Bell doesn’t just chime, it opens up access.
We’re spotlighting the FLOSS (Free/Libre and Open Source Software) work of the Sarai Programme, an early and influential effort to make free software meaningful and usable in the Indian context. Sarai didn’t treat free software as a purely technical project, but as a cultural and linguistic one.
Through public lectures, workshops, and seminars with many conducted in Hindi, Sarai worked to demystify free software practices and build wider awareness. It published books and learning materials in both Hindi and English and organised rigorous review workshops to test and improve the quality and usability of software translations.
Sarai also launched a Free Software Fellowship, supporting sustained engagement with open technologies and played a key role in developing and releasing one of the first desktop computing environments in Hindi. Beyond Hindi, the initiative actively supported localisation efforts in Kannada, Telugu, Odia, Urdu, and Kashmiri, pushing back against the idea that computing had to be English-first.
At a time when software ecosystems were largely proprietary and exclusionary, Sarai’s FLOSS work helped lay the groundwork for more open, accessible, and locally rooted digital participation. It’s a great reminder that openness is built, not assumed.
EVENTS
1. ATRIP 2026 Mid-Year Webinar: Global Developments in Technology Transfer
16 January 2026 | 15:00 – 16:30 CET
The ATRIP 2026 Mid-Year Webinar will bring together members of the global intellectual property community to discuss global developments in technology transfer, exchange insights, and connect ahead of the upcoming Annual Congress. The webinar is open to all, including both ATRIP members and non-members, and offers an opportunity for timely discussion of key issues shaping technology transfer at the international level.
More info | Register here
2. Virtual Session: Responsible AI from a Legal Perspective, NUJS Intellectual Property and Technology Laws Society (IPTLS)
17 January 2026 | 4:00 PM IST
The NUJS Intellectual Property and Technology Laws Society (IPTLS) will host a virtual session with Mr. Vibhav Mithal, FHCA, Associate Partner at Anand and Anand, on Responsible AI from a legal perspective. The session will examine legal frameworks and emerging challenges surrounding responsible AI and will be moderated by Dr. Paramita DasGupta, Assistant Professor of Law and Technology at NUJS. The deadline for registration is 16 January 2026 at 11:59 PM IST.
Register here
3. Virtual Book Launch & Discussion: The Secret Life of Copyright: Intellectual Property and Inequality in the Age of AI (Southwestern Law School, LA)
6 February 2026 | 12:30 PM PT or 02:00 AM IST
This online event marks the launch of Professor John Tehranian’s new book published by Cambridge University Press & Assessment, The Secret Life of Copyright: Intellectual Property and Inequality in the Age of AI. The discussion will explore how copyright rules shape who is heard, credited, and compensated as technology transforms the creation and reuse of creative work, with a particular focus on questions of power, authorship, and inequality in the digital age. Professor Tehranian will be joined in conversation by Professor Madhavi Sunder (Georgetown Law), followed by an audience Q&A.
Register here
OPPORTUNITIES
1. PhD Position in Copyright and Generative Artificial Intelligence, Tilburg Institute for Law, Technology, and Society (TILT)
Deadline: 27 February 2026
The Tilburg Institute for Law, Technology, and Society (TILT) is inviting applications for a full-time, 4-year PhD position focusing on Copyright and Generative Artificial Intelligence (G-AI). The position is based at Tilburg University and is scheduled to commence on 1 September 2026. The appointment is for 48 months, with a full-time gross monthly salary ranging from €3,059 to €3,881, in accordance with Dutch university pay scales. The PhD candidate will be embedded in TILT’s interdisciplinary research environment at the intersection of law, technology, and society.
More info
2. Doctoral Student Positions, Department of Law, Uppsala University
Deadline: 1 March 2026
The Department of Law, Uppsala University, is inviting applications for three full-time doctoral student (PhD) positions. The appointments offer the opportunity to pursue doctoral research within a leading research environment, with doctoral students primarily devoting time to their own research and, where applicable, participating in departmental duties in accordance with university regulations.
More info
Thanks to Lokesh and Niharika for the leads!
All non-sponsored listings featured here are events or opportunities free or nominally charged and ones we think our readers may be interested in. Sponsored listings will be marked as such. Unless specifically mentioned, SpicyIP has no affiliation to anything listed here. Know of an event worth sharing? Write to us at contact[at]spicyip[dot]com.
