Empowering Women in IP: Bridging Gaps and Building Futures | IPWatchdog Unleashed

Last week, we hosted our first annual Women’s IP Forum, which was a huge success. This program came about for several reasons.

First, as many of you may know our “Masters Series” of events gets its name from the fact that those who are invited to speak on panels have true masters level knowledge and experience, often with speakers having at least a generation of industry experience, sometimes much more. And as much as I like the high level conversations we have at our Masters events, and while I don’t plan on making changes to the masters model, I’ve been bothered by not having some forum for rising stars to participate in.

And then earlier this year when I was planning our patent litigation masters program I was having a difficult time finding women speakers. After doing a little digging I learned that only 10% of patent litigators are women. It was then that I started then to formulate a plan to at least do something.

At about this same time I had a conversation with USPTO Director Kathi Vidal in which I shared my working thoughts about a Women’s IP Forum, which would include everyone from rising stars to those who are well established and at the top of the industry. I asked her what she thought of the idea. Director Vidal was immediately enthusiastic and supportive, which sealed the deal in my mind. And I decided we needed to move forward with all due speed and not to wait to add a new program as part of our 2025 calendar of events. After receiving more enthusiastic support from firms and many women in the industry we somewhat hastily put together the program we had last week, which despite the speed with which it all came together was the best attended program we have hosted to date at IPWatchdog Studios. The excitement and energy were palpable.

We were honored to have Director Vidal join us to kick off the program—a program that featured 100% women. And while I was present running the technology, I did not speak and I did not moderate a single panel. So, the honor of sharing the stage with Director Vidal fell to Renee Quinn, my wife and our Chief Operating Officer.

“I’ve always been interested in science,” Director Director Vidal told Renee when discussing her career path and how she went to college at the age of sixteen. “I started out as a mathematical physics major and realized that I didn’t want to be a professor, which is apparently what you normally are if you have a mathematical physics degree, and so I went into electrical engineering because it was the hardest. I was told that if I went into electrical engineering and I changed my mind, I could go into any other field of engineering. But if I went into one of the other fields, I would have to then reapply.”

After graduating from college, Vidal began work at GE Aerospace where she worked on the first AI systems for aircraft, which kicked off a lifelong interested in artificial intelligence.

“The way that I orient to AI is somewhat the way I orient to intellectual property,” Vidal told Renee. “I think it can be a democratizer when it comes to innovation. And I think our country needs democratizers. We need ways to bring everybody into the innovation ecosystem. We need more people on bat, not only to lift communities, but also to solve for world problems. So, when I think about AI, I don’t focus as much on the trust and security other than we have to get people comfortable with AI, so they use it. We can’t be the country that doesn’t keep our lead because people are afraid of AI.”

With respect to the USPTO’s use of AI, Vidal explains the agency is experimenting with AI, acknowledging the challenges.

“I will say AI is challenging when you’re dealing with an agency that has 30-year-old technology written in COBOL,” Vidal explained. “So, we have a lot more to do than just adopt AI… it’s imperative for national security and for other purposes, for national competitiveness that we not only lead when it comes to AI, but that we lead when it comes to quantum as well.”

Renee also asked Vidal about her about increasing diversity and providing opportunities for all those who have not traditional participated in the innovation ecosystem.

“I feel that it’s a national imperative that we focus on bringing everybody into the ecosystem,” Vidal explained. “And it’s not just women or people who identify in a certain way. It’s people from rural communities. It’s people from our military. It’s everybody who’s not traditionally participated.”

Director Vidal would go on to discuss advice she would give to her younger self, how women can elevate themselves within the industry, and took questions from the audience.

So, without any further ado, here is a portion of Renee’s conversation with Director Vidal from the IPWatchdog Women’s IP Forum.

To hear this entire conversation, listen wherever you get your podcasts (links here). Or visit IPWatchdog Unleashed on Buzzsprout.