Qualcomm and Invent Together Champion Patent Diversity
As featured in Qualcomm's 2021 Corporate Responsibility Report
At Qualcomm, we believe that the U.S. patent system should reflect the diversity of this country, and if we can diversify who is inventing and patenting, we can create jobs, boost the U.S. economy, close wage and wealth gaps and ensure the U.S. remains a global leader in innovation.
We are actively working to create more equitable opportunities for women and people of color in innovation, externally and in our own business. In 2020, Qualcomm became a founding partner of Invent Together, a campaign supported by organizations, universities, companies and other stakeholders dedicated to understanding the gender, race, income and other diversity gaps in invention and patenting and supporting public policy and private efforts to close them.
Invent Together is advocating for the Inventor Diversity for Economic Advancement (IDEA) Act, which would direct the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to collect inventors’ demographic data on a voluntary basis and make this information available in the aggregate for research. Qualcomm previously championed the passage of the SUCCESS Act in 2018, which required the USPTO to study and report on the number of patents applied for and obtained by women, minorities and veterans and to make recommendations for legislative and executive actions to reduce disparities in patenting.
In 2021, we continued our efforts to educate policymakers, corporations and the public about the patent gaps and the benefits of patent diversity. We have also supported new research by leading academics and think tanks on quantifying patent gaps and how to fix them. Organizations like the Institute for Women’s Policy Research have published research that drives action across the entire innovation ecosystem.
In collaboration with other Invent Together member organizations, we have promoted public and private sector initiatives to institute best practices for patent diversity, and shared stories of diverse inventors to raise awareness.
Invent Together’s partners include:
- AnitaB.org
- Association of American Universities
- Association for Women in Science
- AUTM, formerly the Association of University Technology Managers
- Boston University
- Collaboratory
- Columbia Technology Ventures
- Emory University
- Future Forward
- Institute for Women’s Policy Research
- Lemelson-MIT
- The Ohio State University
- Project Invent
- Society of Women Engineers
- University of Oregon Women’s Innovation Network
- VentureWell
- Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation
- Women in Engineering ProActive Network
Learn more in Qualcomm's 2021 Corporate Responsibility Report
