WJR Business Beat: National Inventors Day Celebrates Innovation in the U.S. (Episode 363)

WJR Business Beat Transcript

Good morning, Paul! This morning on the Business Beat, we’re focused on a segment of the entrepreneurial community driven by inventors. You know, much of our innovation in the U.S. is driven by big corporations. However, there’s a huge segment of the population made up of independent inventors or small businesses innovating and creating business opportunities based on their innovations. Now, most of us know when that eureka moment hits, it’s important to protect your intellectual property, your idea, your invention. And one way to do this is through the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office by filing a patent application. One of the most powerful and effective patent offices in the world, the U.S. PTO as it’s known is something of a true beacon of democracy and fairness, a real hallmark of why the United States is still considered the land of innovation. Now last year, the U.S. PTO issued 374,066 patents. Is this whole notion of innovating and protecting people’s inventions important to our culture here in the U.S.? Well, you bet it is. And in 1983, Ronald Reagan had this to say: “Almost 200 years ago, President George Washington recognized that invention and innovation were fundamental to the welfare and strength of the United States. He successfully urged the first Congress to enact a patent statute as expressly authorized by the U.S. Constitution and wisely advised that there is nothing which can better deserve your patronage than the promotion of science. And in 1790, the first patent statute initiated the transformation of the United States from an importer of technology to a world leader in technological innovation.” Reagan goes on to say, “Inventors are the keystone of the technological process that is so vital to the economic, environmental, and social well-being of this country.” Last week, we celebrated National Inventors Day on Thomas Alva Edison’s birthday, a day to recognize the great innovators among us here in the United States. I’m Jeff Sloan, founder and CEO of startupnation.com, and that’s today’s Business Beat on the Great Voice of the Great Lakes, WJR.