05/06/2026
The first Ferrari EV has taken over social media, but for the wrong reasons… 🚗
Love it or hate it, Ferrari’s new Luce is a useful reminder that intellectual property is not a last-minute exercise. By the time Ferrari’s first fully electric vehicle was revealed, the IP groundwork had already been laid. Patents dating back to 2019 show work on electric axle architectures, drivetrain technologies, battery integration, thermal management and even the emotional driving experience. In total, the Luce reportedly incorporates over 60 proprietary technologies.
Ferrari also secured the LUCE name as a trade mark in various countries (the Mazda-Japan dispute aside), and appears to have at least considered design protection before launch. From an IP perspective, that is impressive and commendable.
Yet there is a deeper question at play: “Will people actually buy it?” By simply looking at the impact the Luce launch has on Ferrari stock, it becomes clear that a perfectly protected product that nobody wants may still be a commercial failure.
Notable, patents do not create demand… trade marks do not create loyal customers…. and design registrations do not guarantee market acceptance. Put simply: IP protects value. It does not create it.
For this reason, at STEYN IP® we often start with a simple question: “Will this be worth protecting?” Not because we only care about the registration, certificate or legal right. To the contrary, we ask this because we care about the business behind the IP just as much.
The best IP strategy cannot compensate for poor ex*****on, weak market fit, bad pricing, operational failures or a product that customers simply do not connect with. Ferrari may have done the legal and technical groundwork, but now it comes the part no IP right can guarantee… Ex*****on.
What do you think? Is Ferrari’s electric future a masterstroke, or a risk that even world-class IP cannot save?