Assignment history

Inventors

The sole named inventor for US Patent 10,403,051 is Patrick Soon-Shiong. At the time of filing (November 9, 2018), the patent was assigned to Nant Holdings IP LLC, suggesting he was likely associated with or an owner of Nant Holdings IP LLC or its parent company, NantWorks, LLC, given his role as founder of NantWorks. There are no immediate signals to suggest all inventors departing the original assignee within 12 months of filing, as he is the sole inventor and the patent was assigned on the filing date.

Original assignee

The entity named on the issued patent is Nant Holdings IP LLC.
Nant Holdings IP LLC primarily functions as an intellectual property holding company for patents originating from the ecosystem of companies under NantWorks, LLC, founded by Patrick Soon-Shiong. While NantWorks and its various subsidiaries (e.g., NantHealth, NantMobile) develop and ship products across healthcare, biotech, and technology sectors, Nant Holdings IP LLC itself does not appear to directly ship products embodying the claims of this patent. Its primary line of business is patent acquisition, management, and licensing.
Current Status: Nant Holdings IP LLC is an active intellectual property holding company. Its parent entity, NantWorks, LLC, remains an operating company.

Assignment timeline

• 2018-11-09 (executed) / recorded 2018-11-20 — Reel 050019/0313
  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST
  • Assignor: SOON-SHIONG, PATRICK
  • Assignee: NANT HOLDINGS IP, LLC
  • Correspondent: GREGORY J. GOSHEN & ASSOCIATES, PC, 1601 DOVER RD, NEWPORT BEACH, CA 92660. This correspondent also appears on other patent recordings, suggesting a repeat player.
  • Context: Initial assignment from the inventor to the corporate entity that would become the original assignee on the issued patent.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 10403051
    2018 : Assigned to Nant Holdings IP LLC

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — unclear. While Nant Holdings IP LLC has "IP" in its name and appears to be an IP holding entity, there is no evidence of a transfer from an operating company to this entity after the initial assignment from the inventor. The initial assignment to an IP holding company is common for many operating companies. The registered agent address and single-purpose LLC status are not explicitly confirmed in the provided records to definitively label it a "shell-entity transfer" in the context of a later transfer from an operating entity.
2. Known asserter in the chain — unclear. NantWorks, LLC and Nant Holdings IP, LLC have initiated litigation, as documented in the "Litigation summary" (e.g., NantWorks, LLC v. Niantic, Inc.). This indicates they are asserters. However, they are not typically listed on common public NPE lists like Marathon Patent Group or Intellectual Ventures. Their assertion activities tend to stem from a broader operating company's portfolio.
3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — present. The correspondent, GREGORY J. GOSHEN & ASSOCIATES, PC, is noted to be a "repeat player" on other patent recordings, as stated in the assignment timeline for reel 050019/0313.
4. Cascading transfers — not present. There is only one recorded assignment for this patent.
5. Pre-litigation transfer — not present. The initial assignment from the inventor to Nant Holdings IP LLC occurred on November 9, 2018. The first infringement suit, NantWorks, LLC v. Niantic, Inc., was filed on September 3, 2020. This gap of nearly two years does not meet the "within 6 months" criteria for a pre-litigation transfer.
6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — not present. No evidence of bankruptcy proceedings for Nant Holdings IP LLC or NantWorks, LLC.
7. Privateering — unclear. While NantWorks, LLC (the parent of Nant Holdings IP LLC) has operating companies, and Nant Holdings IP, LLC asserts patents, there is no explicit public evidence in the provided context or common knowledge that Nant Holdings IP, LLC acts as a "privateer" asserting on behalf of specific operating companies against their direct competitors in a hidden arrangement.
8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — not present. The patent is currently held by Nant Holdings IP LLC, an asserting entity, not a defensive aggregator.

Verdict

NPE — moderate confidence

Nant Holdings IP LLC, while part of a larger operating ecosystem (NantWorks, LLC), functions as an IP holding company and has engaged in patent assertion, as seen in the NantWorks, LLC v. Niantic, Inc. litigation. The presence of a repeat correspondent (GREGORY J. GOSHEN & ASSOCIATES, PC) on the initial assignment also signals patterns often associated with entities involved in patent monetization, though not exclusively NPEs. The lack of direct product shipping by the assignee itself for this patent strengthens the classification.

For verification, see the USPTO Assignment Center search results for Patent No. 10403051: https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/