Or if you are at a big company and come up with an extremely hypothetical idea that includes generic enough sounding claims to potentially cover cool ideas that

Or if you are at a big company and come up with an extremely hypothetical idea that includes generic enough sounding claims to potentially cover cool ideas that a startup may one day actually solve and implement, you can work with an IP lawyer to file a patent and get a plaque and/or a modest cash bonus as the reward for expanding the big company's IP portfolio.