Rewarding Inventors Who Work to Solve Global Challenges

Today at the White House, United States Patent & Trademark Office Director Dave Kappos launched the Patents for Humanity pilot program, which creates business incentives for patent holders to engage in humanitarian issues. Under the new program, inventors who do the most to apply their technologies to pressing global challenges will be rewarded with a certificate that can be redeemed to accelerate a patent application, an appeal, or an ex parte reexamination proceeding before the USPTO. The awardee may choose to accelerate any patent application in their portfolio, not just the humanitarian technology that qualifies for the award.