Introduction Artificial intelligence (AI) has become a hot topic, and its potential to boost productivity has captured the attention of economists, computer scientists, and managers. A groundbreaking study conducted by economists from Stanford and MIT sheds light on the impact of generative AI (GAI) on worker productivity.1 In this article, I explore the study’s primary […]
USPTO
Factors Influencing the Legal Quality of Patents
As I mentioned in a previous blog post, different aspects of patent quality are affected by different actors in the patent system. Improving patent quality requires careful examination of the various policy levers available to different actors. For instance, the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is bound by the statutes set forth by Congress. […]
Exploring the Policy Levers that Impact Patent Quality
During my tenure at the US Patent and Trademark Office, the agency engaged in its Enhanced Patent Quality Initiative. To effectively improve patent quality, it was important to understand the various policy “levers” that might influence quality (and of course to understand what we mean by quality, as I discussed here). What levers are available […]
Intellectual Property Issues in Buy/Sell Agreements
Intellectual property (IP) refers to intangible assets such as patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets. These assets increasingly represent significant, material value of businesses, and as such, they need to be properly protected and managed in buy/sell agreements. In a buy/sell agreement, the seller is often required to transfer ownership of any IP that is […]
Diversity and Inclusion in Intellectual Property
Ocean Tomo Senior Director Molly Keelan shares insights from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) report, “Where are U.S. women patentees? Assessing three decades of growth.” In the last 230, years the United States has issued over 9 million patents representing key technologies, life-saving drugs, medical devices and products that make our lives […]
Understanding Patent Value and Patent Quality
In the last decade and a half patent quality has been at the forefront of debates about patent policy. Industry professionals of all sorts (patent holders, legal practitioners, implementers, policymakers, and academics) seem to agree about the importance of patent quality, but often the consensus stops there. It’s no wonder, because the term ”patent quality” […]
Patent Value, Uncertainty, and the Debate about Patent Quality
When I was the Chief Economist at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), I sometimes encountered people who were surprised to know that I existed. Well, not me as an individual, but the role of Chief Economist. Why does the USPTO have economists? Now, many of these individuals were Congressional staffer-types on their fourth […]
Ocean Tomo Patent Quality Study for Crain’s Chicago Business
Ocean Tomo, a part of J.S. Held, announces the study of patent quality among Chicagoland companies, exclusively in the October 24 issue of Crain’s Chicago Business, recognizing invention among Chicagoland companies and their patent prosecution law firms. Dr. Alan Marco, Chief Economist for Ocean Tomo, having previously served as the Chief Economist for the U.S. […]