The whole sentence is: > My work is trade secret so I’ve never filed a patent, written a publication, nor given a talk. "My work is a trade secret so..." is

The whole sentence is: > My work is trade secret so I’ve never filed a patent, written a publication, nor given a talk. "My work is a trade secret so..." is an important part of the sentence, which I read as a qualifier/context to the "never". It could be interpreted either way.