Alex Chen
Ascend N. California - Member
Alex Chen has been a member of Ascend since 2016. From 2017-2018, he was a Board Member with the Ascend LA Metro Chapter.
Alex serves as an in-house patent counsel at TikTok, managing global patent litigation and risk mitigation. He previously worked at Disney, Facebook and top intellectual property law firms.
He enjoys mentoring and speaks about career growth, networking, interview tips, brand development and work-life balance.
His hobbies include teaching karate, playing guitar, artwork, happy hours and posting on TikTok (praiseHim312).
Current Residence: Mountain View, California
Birthplace: New York
How did you first learn about Ascend?
A VP at Disney invited me to attend my first Ascend National Convention a few years ago. It was amazing! I heard incredible speakers (memorable ones included the first astronaut from South Korea and a blind chef who won the Master Chef competition), attended a workshop on brand awareness and executive presence taught by industry leaders (shout out to Wes Hom, Larry Chang and Buck Gee) and had a chance to speak on stage to hundreds of people about “Unleashing Your Super Power.”
What are some important lessons you’ve learned through Ascend?
I’ve learned about the importance of brand awareness and the power of allies, mentors and executive sponsors.
What do you value about your cultural heritage?
We are inventors, creators and entrepreneurs.
What’s your favorite personal cultural tradition and how do you enjoy celebrating it?
Practicing and teaching martial arts.
What book(s) do you typically recommend others to read and why?
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Book of Proverbs – Written more than 2,000 years ago, it still offers the best career, business and life advice! It covers hard work vs. laziness, protecting your brand/reputation and more.
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What Got You Here Won’t Get You There by Marshall Goldsmith – Important information and reminders on how it is harder for mid-level and senior people to advance their careers, that everyone has a blind spot and getting over what is holding you back? Chapter 9 is pure gold.
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The Ride of a Lifetime by Bob Iger – It’s amazing biography of the CEO of The Walt Disney Company, how he became CEO and had the vision to build an empire by buying Pixar, Marvel Studios and Lucasfilm.
What’s something you recently started working on?
Early in the pandemic when I worked from home, I learned knife throwing. See my TikTok videos at praiseHim312.
Alex mentoring students at Santa Clara University School of Law.
Dressed as Chirrut Imwe of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Alex strikes a pose with Stormtroopers. He has been attending the San Diego
Comic-Con for the last 16 years.
* When acquiring a book recommendation, please consider making your purchase through AmazonSmile smile.amazon.com, setting Ascend Foundation Inc (Location: New York, NY) as your charity of choice.