NSF joins USPTO Council for Inclusive Innovation

Today, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office announced U.S. National Science Foundation Director Sethuraman Panchanathan as a co-vice chair of the Council for Inclusive Innovation, or CI². The USPTO council will develop a national strategy for expanding innovation to build a more inclusive and expansive innovation ecosystem.

The new Co-Vice Chairs of the Council include:

• Alejandra Castillo, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development
• Don Cravins, Jr., Under Secretary of Commerce for Minority Business Development
• Laurie E. Locascio, Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Director
• Sethuraman Panchanathan, National Science Foundation (NSF) Director
• Shira Perlmutter, Register of Copyrights and Director of the U.S. Copyright Office

The government leaders will work with council members — executives from industry, academia, nonprofits and government — to develop a National Innovation Strategy that will drive fast, sustainable progress for expanding entrepreneurial opportunities.

"Anchored by cutting-edge research and an unmatched diversity of ideas, the U.S. has led global innovation for generations," said Panchanathan. "At a time of intense competition, U.S. economic leadership is at risk if many Americans — and their insights — are left out of the innovation ecosystem. NSF is proud to work through CI² and our array of agency initiatives, such as our Innovation Corps and Regional Innovation Engines, to recruit entrepreneurial minds from every corner of our nation and remove barriers that have hindered the entrepreneurial spirit."

Today's announcement was made by Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, chair of CI², and Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and USPTO Director Kathi Vidal, vice chair of CI².

The USPTO recently announced new initiatives under CI² to expand innovation and promote jobs and economic prosperity, including a program to expedite examination of patent applications from first-time filers and a new innovation internship program.

CI² and its forerunner, the National Council for Expanding American Innovation, were formed out of a recommendation in the USPTO's "SUCCESS ACT of 2018" study and report that aimed to increase the participation and development of women, veterans and underrepresented groups as inventors and entrepreneurs.