I, Paul M. Mercado, do hereby declare:
`
`1.
`
`I am making this declaration in connection with Inter Partes reviews of U.S.
`
`Patent Nos. 10,299,517; 10,485,269; 10,492,541; and 10,588,357 ("IPR matter").
`
`Unless otherwise stated, the facts stated in this Declaration are based on my
`
`personal knowledge.
`
`2.
`
`I am currently the Head of Research and Development for Vox Media
`
`(operator of The Verge). I was the Chief Technology Officer from 2016 to 2021 .
`
`Prior to that, I was the Vice President of Technology starting in 2007. In 2011 , I
`
`was a member of the product team that helped create The Verge. I received my
`
`B.A. in English and Philosophy from Texas State University. I am familiar with
`
`The Verge' s customary and ordinary practice for publication of articles that has
`
`existed throughout my employment at The Verge.
`
`3. Attached hereto is an article titled: "Startup behind the Lambo of vaporizers just
`
`launched an intelligent e-cigarette" ("the Verge article") labelled as RJR V Exhibit
`
`1012 in the IPR matter. The Verge article is a saved PDF of an article that was
`
`posted on The Verge's website
`
`(https://www.theverge.com/2015/4/21/8458629/pax-labs-e-cigarette-juul) on April
`
`21, 2015 at 8:00 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time as indicated on the article. The
`
`Verge' s URL format (numbers "2015/4/21 ") also identifies the date this article was
`
`posted to The Verge' s website. I have reviewed the Verge's records, including The
`
`RJRV EX 1015
`Page 1
`
`

`

`Verge's current website, and confirmed that RJRV Exhibit 1012 is a true and
`
`correct copy of the Verge article posted on April 21, 2015 . If an article had
`
`changed from the time of posting, there would be an indicia of the modification,
`
`such as an updated notation. I note that the Verge article (RJRV Exhibit 1012) does
`
`not include any "Updated: [date/time] notation." This indicates that, based on
`
`information about which I have personal knowledge, the substance of the Verge
`
`article has not changed since April 21 , 2015 at 8:00 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
`
`the date on which the article was published publicly.
`
`4.
`
`According to The Verge's customary and ordinary practice in April 2015,
`
`the newest articles published on the site were automatically linked on The Verge' s
`
`homepage. According to this practice, the Verge article would have been linked on
`
`the homepage on The Verge at April 21 , 2015 at 8:00 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time.
`
`At that time, the Verge article would also have been locatable via The Verge
`
`search functionality, i.e. using the search box shown at the top of The Verge
`
`website. As of April 21 , 2015, via this search engine, interested members of the
`
`public would have been able to immediately locate the Verge article via a keyword
`
`search. Also at that time, it is my understanding that The Verge' s articles are
`
`immediately picked-up by third-party search engines (e.g. , Google). As a result, on
`
`April 21 , 2015, interested members of the public could have used third-party
`
`RJRV EX 1015
`Page 2
`
`

`

`search engines (e.g., Google) to locate the Verge article on the internet via a
`
`keyword search as well.
`
`5.
`
`I declare that all statements made herein on my own knowledge are true and
`
`that all statements made on information and belief are believed to be true, and
`
`further, that these statements were made with the knowledge that willful false
`
`statements and the like so made are punishable by fine or imprisonment, or both,
`
`under Section 1001 of Title 18 of the United States Code.
`
`VoxMedia
`?aui Yerca@
`By: Paul Mercado (Mar 31, 2021 12:14 EDT)
`
`Name: Paul M. Mercado
`
`Title: Head of Research and Development
`Date: Mar 31, 2021
`
`- - - - - - - - - - - - - -
`
`RJRV EX 1015
`Page 3
`
`

`

`
`
`
`
`
`APPENDIX A
`
`APPENDIX A
`
`

`

`3/25/2021
`
`Startup behind the Lambo of vaporizers just launched an intelligent e-cigarette - The Verge
`
`SCIENCE
`
`TECH
`
`Startup behind the Lambo of vaporizers just
`launched an intelligent e-cigaree
`Surprise, it's a rectangle
`
`31
`
`By Nitasha Tiku
`
` Apr 21, 2015, 8:00am EDT
`
`The office for Pax Labs, the San Francisco company behind the stylish and popular Pax
`loose-leaf vaporizer, is located in the same building as the headquarters for Burning
`Man. Sometimes the two tenants have joint happy hours and the Burners help out with
`costumes. It's "a good cultural match for us," Sarah Richardson, Pax's director of
`communications said during a recent visit to the company. "They make us look
`conservative."
`
`Richardson was sitting at a conference table puffing on Pax's newest product: a slim,
`rectangular e-cigarette called Juul. Seated around the table were the mechanical and
`electrical engineers behind Juul, including Pax's research scientist Chenyue Xing, who
`has a PhD in chemical engineering and experience with inhalation products.
`
`https://www.theverge.com/2015/4/21/8458629/pax-labs-e-cigarette-juul
`
`1/6
`
`RJRV EX 1012
`
`

`

`3/25/2021
`
`Startup behind the Lambo of vaporizers just launched an intelligent e-cigarette - The Verge
`
`THE KEY TO SMOKER SATISFACTION IS HITTING PEAK NICOTINE FIVE MINUTES IN
`
`The small team has helped create what Pax Labs (formerly known as Ploom) is calling
`"an intelligently engineered and intensely satisfying new vapor experience." What makes
`it intelligent? "That’s up for personal interpretation isn’t it? Just kidding," CEO James
`Monsees told me later, by phone.
`
`In Monsees' interpretation, Juul is smarter than the competition because of its ability to
`mimic the satisfaction of smoking a regular "combustion" cigarette. The key to that buzz
`is a sharp peak of nicotine in the consumer's blood profile about five minutes after she
`takes her first puff. To recreate that spike, the team started with the chemistry of its
`liquid-nicotine cartridges, or "Juulpods," which use nicotine salts, rather than "free-base
`nicotine." Using salts allowed Pax to increase the nicotine concentration from two
`percent to five percent without being unpalatable. Adding organic acids were also a key
`part to make inhaling smoother. It's not delivering more nicotine overall, it's delivering it
`in a more satisfying way, the team told me.
`
`"JUULPODS" JUST ROLLS OFF THE TONGUE
`
`The other differentiator that makes Juul smarter is temperature control, using what they
`called a precision resistance measurement circuit to figure out the ideal temperature for
`
`https://www.theverge.com/2015/4/21/8458629/pax-labs-e-cigarette-juul
`
`2/6
`
`RJRV EX 1012
`
`

`

`3/25/2021
`Startup behind the Lambo of vaporizers just launched an intelligent e-cigarette - The Verge
`vaporization. "When you’re able to control the temperature really well," said Monsees,
`the flavor doesn't change and you don't create degradation compounds that you don't
`want to inhale. Although tank-based e-cigarettes allow users to adjust the temperature,
`it's less controlled because the liquids and device are from different companies and
`changes depending on whether the user puffs faster or slower.
`
`To demonstrate Juul's precision in this area Ari Atkins, an R&D engineer, connected Juul
`to his Macbook, started inhaling, and the graph below appeared on the conference room
`screen.
`
`Juul is definitely not for the keep vaping weird crowd, who care about customization, but
`I found Juul's design simple and intuitive. The disposable cartridges easily popped into
`the device. Each puff did seem standardized. Sure, I felt a little like an alien whipping it
`out at a bar, but a really minimalist alien. The device comes with a one-year warranty
`and uses a magnetic USB deck to recharge. It takes one hour to charge and that will last
`you for about one pod or 200 "puffs per charge," the company says. To figure out
`whether it needs to be charged, you gently tap the device twice and a little light on the
`front glows red, yellow, or green.
`
`https://www.theverge.com/2015/4/21/8458629/pax-labs-e-cigarette-juul
`
`3/6
`
`RJRV EX 1012
`
`

`

`3/25/2021
`
`Startup behind the Lambo of vaporizers just launched an intelligent e-cigarette - The Verge
`
`A REALLY MINIMALIST ALIEN
`
`Consumers can purchase Juul starting June, 2015. Pax is selling the starter kit (the
`device, a multi-pack of Juulpods in four flavors, and a USB charger) for $49.99 and the
`4-packs of the pods for $15.99.
`
`For novices or fans of clean design, it's less clunky than skeuomorphic devices like
`Njoys, which are built to look like a cigarette, and involves fewer parts than Blu's
`rechargeable model. Plus, there's no glowing light or specter of Jenny McCarthy.
`
`Pax Labs recently released a new model of its vaporizer (happy belated 4/20, buddies).
`But it's a dicey time to get into the e-cig business. The Food and Drug Administration
`(FDA) formally proposed regulations for e-cigarettes last April. According to The Hill, the
`FDA is unlikely to act before June, but academics and researchers aren't waiting around.
`In February, a study was published showing that exposing mice to e-cigarette vapor for
`just two weeks had damaged their immune system. For the study, they tested Njoy, one
`of the biggest brands in the market. The most alarming report came from a survey
`published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last week, which found that
`e-cigarette usage was now more popular than cigarettes in middle and high schools.
`However as The New York Times pointed out, the shift could also suggest "that some
`teenage smokers may be using e-cigarettes to quit."
`
`https://www.theverge.com/2015/4/21/8458629/pax-labs-e-cigarette-juul
`
`4/6
`
`RJRV EX 1012
`
`

`

`3/25/2021
`
`Startup behind the Lambo of vaporizers just launched an intelligent e-cigarette - The Verge
`
`E-CIGARETTES ARE MORE POPULAR THAN CIGARETTES IN HIGH SCHOOL
`
`While the data is being debated, officials like the California Department of Public Health,
`which put out the video below, are already campaigning over advertising e-cigarettes to
`kids.
`
`Pax Labs is very careful not to make any claims about health or smoking cessation.
`Monsees is the first to acknowledge that his company has "a vested interest" in calling
`itself a healthier cigarette, and therefore should not be the one to analyze its own risks.
`E-cigs have been popular for the past five years, but the industry still doesn't have the
`kind of "conclusive studies" the agency requires for over-the-counter medications, food,
`or cosmetics, he said. "All I can do is encourage regulators." When I pressed Monsees
`about how Pax thinks of the issue, he called combustion cigarettes "the most popular
`consumer product of all time that has known issues." Pax's goal is to make "compellingly
`better products."
`
`"THE MOST POPULAR CONSUMER PRODUCT OF ALL TIME THAT HAS KNOWN ISSUES"
`
`Atkins, the R&D engineer, was a less diplomatic. "We don’t think a lot about addiction
`here because we’re not trying to design a cessation product at all," he said, later noting
`"anything about health is not on our mind," before his colleagues collectively winced.
`Atkins, who used to smoke close to half a pack of Marlborough Reds a day, may make a
`good poster boy for Juul regardless. While developing the product, "I just realized one
`day that I hadn’t smoked cigarettes in a month," he said. Atkins didn’t think of it as
`quitting smoking, "I just like it better."
`
`https://www.theverge.com/2015/4/21/8458629/pax-labs-e-cigarette-juul
`
`5/6
`
`RJRV EX 1012
`
`

`

`3/25/2021
`
`Startup behind the Lambo of vaporizers just launched an intelligent e-cigarette - The Verge
`
`Addiction and obligation are issues that Silicon Valley would rather avoid. Filings with the
`Security and Exchange Commission from earlier this month show that Pax has been
`trying to raise $25 million in funding, but has only sold investors on $6.5 million so far.
`Companies sometimes file Form D's before the round has closed and Monsees would
`not disclose anything about ongoing funding efforts, but he did acknowledge that Sand
`Hill Road hasn’t welcomed him with open wallets. "Venture firms are generally set up to
`invest in innovation, but the kind of innovation that comes out of the Valley, and we’re not
`exactly that." Although he declined to share revenue, Monsees said Pax was in a
`"growth phase" and now "well beyond" the milestone of selling half a million Pax devices,
`which the company announced in February.
`
`Juul's name is supposed to be a play on the word jewel because Pax wanted to create
`something more lasting and precious than throwaway cigarettes. "We didn't want to spell
`it the same because we like being different," said Monsees. The four flavors of the liquid
`— miint, fruut, bruulé , and tabaac — also exhibit the same devil may care attitude
`towards spelling. This contrarian impulse may serve Juul better when it comes to its thin,
`rectangular design. As Atkins put it: "I like to wear skinny jeans."
`
`Verge Video archive: This is what vape-hacking looks like (2014)
`
`https://www.theverge.com/2015/4/21/8458629/pax-labs-e-cigarette-juul
`
`6/6
`
`RJRV EX 1012
`
`

Accessing this document will incur an additional charge of $.

After purchase, you can access this document again without charge.

Accept $ Charge

This document could not be displayed.

We could not find this document within its docket. Please go back to the docket page and check the link. If that does not work, go back to the docket and refresh it to pull the newest information.

Your account does not support viewing this document.

You need a Paid Account to view this document. Click here to change your account type.

Your account does not support viewing this document.

Set your membership status to view this document.

With a Docket Alarm membership, you'll get a whole lot more, including:

  • Up-to-date information for this case.
  • Email alerts whenever there is an update.
  • Full text search for other cases.
  • Get email alerts whenever a new case matches your search.

Become a Member

One Moment Please

The filing “” is large (MB) and is being downloaded.

Please refresh this page in a few minutes to see if the filing has been downloaded. The filing will also be emailed to you when the download completes.

Your document is on its way!

If you do not receive the document in five minutes, contact support at support@docketalarm.com.

Sealed Document

We are unable to display this document, it may be under a court ordered seal.

If you have proper credentials to access the file, you may proceed directly to the court's system using your government issued username and password.


Access Government Site

We are redirecting you
to a mobile optimized page.

We are unable to display this document.

PTO Denying Access

Refresh this Document
Go to the Docket