The IP Awareness Summit (IPAS) is an annual event dedicated to exploring the impact of intellectual property (IP) on innovation, creative expression, commerce, and society. Organized by the Center for Intellectual Property Understanding (CIPU), IPAS brings together thought leaders, including entrepreneurs, inventors, educators, policymakers, and investors, to discuss and promote IP awareness and education.
The 2023 summit featured a range of topics, such as the intersection of artificial intelligence (AI) and IP rights, strategies for fostering diversity and entrepreneurship through IP, and the role of IP in technological advancements. Sessions included keynotes, panel discussions, and interactive workshops designed to provide attendees with actionable insights into the evolving IP landscape.
Attendees had the opportunity to engage in networking sessions, participate in an expo hall showcasing innovative IP solutions, and hear from notable speakers like Andrei Iancu, former Undersecretary of Commerce and Director of the USPTO, and Kara Miller, founding editor and host of public radio's "Innovation Hub." These sessions provided valuable perspectives on current IP challenges and opportunities.
The summit is ideal for business leaders, legal professionals, educators, and policymakers seeking to deepen their understanding of IP's role in fostering innovation and economic growth. By attending, participants can gain insights into best practices, emerging trends, and strategies for leveraging IP to drive success in their respective fields.
Speakers(14)
Akeem Shannon
Entrepreneur at Flipstik
At 15 Akeem Shannon was bullied for being different; at 19 he flunked out Howard University; at 23 he was committed to a mental hospital; and at 28 he appeared on Shark Tank, after which he was able to scale his business, Flipstik, to $10+ million, and convince Snoop Dogg he was a branding genius. Determined to redeem himself after dropping out of Howard, where he was on full scholarship, he worked at several Fortune 500 companies and a major FinTech company where he was a top sales associate. He made a great living but was not fulfilled. Akeem’s uncle, a NASA engineer, told him about a reusable adhesive based on the feet of geckos that NASA had developed in the 1970s. This would lead to Flipstik, a gravity-defying phone accessory. In 2018 Akeem taught himself to write a patent, file trademarks and launched his product on Kickstarter. The next few years would be a journey of ups and downs. He applied to Shark Tank in 2019 but after months of talks with producers, was not selected to appear on the show. He participated in a music competition that ultimately helped him land a deal with a business mogul who would introduce him to executives at AT&T and to the Rapper Snoop Dogg. They would help him connect with the Shark Tank producers in 2020 and he finally landed a spot on the show. In 2022 Flipstik would grow 1000% landing distribution nationwide in Target, BestBuy, AT&T, T-Mobile, QVC, and others. The device is now sold in over 3000 retailers and launched five new products in 2023. Akeem works as a volunteer mentor and biz coach at Big Brother Big Sister, UMSL Accelerate, Arch Grants, and NFTE. He also partnered with The Brookings Institute on the Olin Brookings Commission to level the playing field in Venture capital for unrepresented minorities and women. Akeem's story was featured at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History’s “Cellphone: Unseen Connections” exhibition in Washington, and in INC Magazine's top 50 fastest growing consumer product companies in 2023.
Brad Watts
SVP, Innovation Policy at Global Innovation Policy Center
Brad Watts is Vice President, Innovation Policy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Global Innovation Policy Center. He works with U.S. Chamber members to foster a political, legal, and economic environment where innovators, creators and businesses can thrive. Prior to joining the Chamber he served as Minority Chief Counsel of the Senate Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on Intellectual Property. As Minority Chief Counsel, Mr. Watts was responsible for planning and implementing Ranking Member Thom Tillis and the Republican minority’s legislative portfolio on all aspects of intellectual property law. He previously served as Majority Chief Counsel and Staff Director for the Senate Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on Intellectual Property in the 116th Congress under then Chairman Thom Tillis. As Majority Chief Counsel, Mr. Watts was responsible for planning and implementing then Chairman Tillis’ legislative and oversight agenda on all aspects of America’s innovation economy. Under Mr. Watts' leadership, the Subcommittee passed the CASE Act, the Trademark Modernization Act, and the Protecting Lawful Streaming Act, three landmark bills.
Bruce Berman
Managing Director at Brody Berman Associates
Bruce Berman is Managing Director of Brody Berman Associates, a management consulting and communications firm that serves innovative businesses and investors. Brody Berman has supported more than 200 businesses and IP portfolios since 1988, as well as many law firms and their clients on a range of IP litigation and transactions. In 2016, he co-founded with Marshall Phelps and Judge Paul Michel the Center for IP Understanding, which he serves as chairman. Bruce is responsible for five books about the business of IP, including From Ideas to Assets. His articles have appeared in Forbes, Nature Biotechnology, National Law Review and The New York Times. "Understanding IP Matters," a critically acclaimed podcast series he hosts, gives guests the opportunity to share their IP story, including the journey from creator to entrepreneur. It has generated more than 11,000 downloads. His "Intangible Investor" column appears regularly on IP Watchdog.
Dan Brown
Award-winning inventor, serial entrepreneur, educator and innovation advocate; USPTO Public Patent Advisory Committee member
Dan Brown is an award-winning designer, serial inventor, entrepreneur and professor, in the Segal Design Institute at Northwestern University. Dr. Brown has received over 100 US and International Utility patents for his novel new product solutions in industry and entrepreneurially, taking many to market himself as a founder of two startups. A recognized innovator in industry with 10 International Design Awards, Dr. Brown has also been elected to the National Academy of Inventors and appointed to the PPAC (Patent Public Advisory Committee) for a three-year term at the USPTO by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce. Dr. Brown has seen both sides of the American Dream with his American Made Bionic Wrench invention: innovation-based market success, while at the same time having to continuously fight knockoffs in the marketplace almost destroying his business. Dr. Brown has committed himself to creating an equitable, protectable, and sustainable intellectual property system for all inventors.
David Lowery
Singer-Songwriter
David Lowery is a guitarist, vocalist, songwriter, mathematician, and activist. He is the founder of the alternative rock band Camper Van Beethoven and the co-founder of Cracker, a successful indie rock band. He has worked as a derivatives trader and financial analyst and has started a number of music-related businesses, including a studio, a record company and a publishing company. Dr. Lowery's extensive experience in business led to his appointment as a lecturer in the University of Georgia’s music business program. Charles Pitter at PopMatters has said that "in addition to this work, Lowery teaches as a lecturer and has a consistently high profile in the media as a champion of artists rights."
James Conley
Clinical Professor of Technology at Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University
James Conley is clinical professor of technology at Northwestern University. He serves on the faculty of both the Kellogg School of Management and the McCormick School of Engineering at Northwestern University. He is a faculty contributor in the Kellogg Center for Research in Technology & Innovation and serves as a Faculty Fellow at the Segal Design Institute (NU IDEA). Beyond academia, Professor Conley is an inventor, an active advocate of IP education for business and other students and leads seminars globally for the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). He is a National Academy of Inventors (NAI) fellow. Professor Conley was appointed a member of the U.S. Department of Commerce Trademark Public Advisory Committee (TPAC) of the Patent and Trademark Office and has been an expert and author for the UN based World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). He serves on the board of several companies and the US Intellectual Property Alliance and the Illinois Intellectual Property Alliance. Professor Conley's research investigates the strategic use of intangible assets and intellectual properties to build and sustain competitive advantage. Kellogg School of Management, under Professor Conley’s leadership, partnered with CIPU on the 2021 and 2024 IP Awareness Summits.
Jamie Simpson
Chief Policy Officer and Counsel at Council for Innovation Promotion
Jamie Simpson is Chief Policy Officer and Counsel for The Council for Innovation Promotion (C4IP), a bipartisan coalition dedicated to promoting strong and effective intellectual property rights that drive innovation, boost economic competitiveness, and improve lives. Jamie has almost 20 years of experience in policy and a specific focus on IP-related issues. She previously served as Chief Counsel on the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, IP, and the Internet; Counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee while on detail from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office; and Associate Solicitor at the USPTO. A graduate of Harvard Law School, the London School of Economics and Harvard University, she served as a law clerk at the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Jamie has extensive expertise in intellectual property law and policy, as well as an earlier background of working on patent litigation and licensing disputes.
Jerry Ma
Chief AI Officer & Director of Emerging Technology at USPTO
Jerry Ma is an executive, technologist, and registered patent practitioner who serves as Chief AI Officer and Director of Emerging Technology at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Jerry hails from an industry background including management and senior technical roles at Facebook AI Research, Quora, and Hummingbird Regtech. He has overseen initiatives resulting in the world’s first public-domain superhuman Go bot and the first deep neural network to be trained on the known protein universe. Jerry is an avid developer and scientist, publishing at venues such as ICML, ICLR, AAAI, and S&P. He has explored diverse topics including the mathematics of nonconvex optimization, quasi-linguistic structure in proteins and passwords, and energy-based neural modeling of atomic structures. As an educator, Jerry has taught computer science & mathematics in undergraduate, graduate, and professional settings. Jerry earned an A.B. in Economics and the Classics from Harvard University.
Jonathan Barnett
Director at USC’s Law, Media, Entertainment & Technology Program
Jonathan Barnett is Director of the USC Gould School of Law’s Media, Entertainment and Technology Law Program. He is author of the recently published The Big Steal: Ideology, Interest, and the Undoing of Intellectual Property, a critically-acclaimed book that has generated discussion about the IP system. He also wrote Innovators, Firms, and Markets: The Organizational Logic of Intellectual Property. Barnett specializes in antitrust, intellectual property, and corporate and business law, with a focus on innovation policy and strategy in technology markets. Barnett has published in the Harvard Law Review, Harvard Journal of Law & Technology, Yale Law Journal, Journal of Legal Studies, and other scholarly journals. He joined USC in 2006 and was a visiting professor at NYU School of Law in 2010.
Jonathan Taplin
Film Producer; Director Emeritus at Innovation Lab at USC
Jonathan Taplin is a film producer, author and scholar. He is Director Emeritus of the Annenberg Innovation Lab at the University of Southern California and was a Professor at the USC Annenberg School from 2003-2016 in the field of international communication management and digital media entertainment. Jon began his entertainment career in 1969 as Tour Manager for Bob Dylan and The Band. In 1973 he produced Martin Scorsese's first feature film, Mean Streets, which was selected for the Cannes Film Festival. Between 1974 and 1996, Taplin produced 26 hours of television documentaries (including The Prize and Cadillac Desert for PBS) and 12 feature films including The Last Waltz, Until The End of the World, Under Fire and To Die For. His films were nominated for Oscar and Golden Globe awards and chosen for The Cannes Film Festival five times.
Kara Miller
Founding Editor and Host of public radio's "Innovation Hub"; Technology columnist at Boston Globe
Kara Miller is "The Big Idea" columnist for the Boston Globe and was executive editor and host of public radio's "Innovation Hub," which she launched in 2011. The series aired on more than 100 stations, spotlighting compelling thinkers, and received the 2021 Clarion Award for Radio Talk or Interview Program. "The Big Idea" column examines game-changing ideas in everything from traffic to dating to housing. Kara has moderated events hosted by The International Women's Forum, PBS Digital Media for STEM, Harvard Medical School, and The Museum of Science Boston. In 2015 and 2016, she ran and hosted a live series for Google and MIT, interviewing experts about thorny problems. She currently hosts the 'Instigators of Change' podcast for Khosla Ventures that explores innovative ideas, the people who come up with them, and those who invest in them. Kara holds a Ph.D. from Tufts and a B.A. from Yale.
Kendalle Burlin-O’Connell
CEO at MassBio
Kendalle leads the strategic direction for MassBio and drives policy advocacy for the industry to ensure that Massachusetts life sciences companies have the best environment possible to research, develop, manufacture, and commercialize breakthrough therapies and cures for people around the world. Kendalle has played a critical role in MassBio’s growth into the largest life sciences trade association in the world with over 1,600 members. In 2022, Kendalle was instrumental in the launch of MassBio’s newest entrepreneurial accelerator program, MassBioDrive and MassBio’s Innovation Week, two initiatives focused on advancing breakthrough science and providing opportunities for innovators from diverse backgrounds in all areas of the life sciences ecosystem. She is a 2022 recipient of the Cambridge Chamber of Commerce Inspire Award recognizing outstanding women leaders in the Cambridge community. Prior to joining MassBio, Kendalle practiced law.
Michael Waltrip
Managing Director, IP Strategy and Commercialization at Xerox
Michael Waltrip is managing director of the Palo Alto Research Center’s (PARC’s) Intellectual Capital Management and Xerox’s Intellectual Property Strategy and Commercialization groups. He heads intellectual property monetization for both PARC and the rest of Xerox, while leading the creation of policies, training and strategy for IP development and commercialization across the organizations. In 2023, the Palo Alto Research Center (PARC) joined SRI, bringing together two iconic Silicon Valley research organizations to build, expand, and scale capabilities. Michael applies his experience in venture investments, diligence and portfolio management, as well as complex commercial transactions, to lead a diverse set of activities ranging from early-stage portfolio assessment and development to the negotiation and structuring of transactions. He has led a wide variety of engagements from large scale sponsored research with corporate sponsors such as Samsung, Dai Nippon Printing, 3M, SolarWorld, Microsoft and Alcon to the spin-out of PARC technology into venture-backed start-ups.
Talal Shamoon
CEO at Intertrust Technologies
Talal Shamoon is the CEO of Intertrust, which he joined in 1997 as a member of the research staff. After holding a series of executive positions, he was named CEO in 2003 when Sony and Philips acquired the company. As an early pioneer of Digital Rights Management (DRM) technology in the late 90s, Talal led Intertrust’s business and technology initiatives in the entertainment and media industries, which includes significant licenses with most IT, consumer electronics and mobile manufacturers and service operators. Prior to joining Intertrust, Talal was a researcher at the NEC Research Institute in Princeton, NJ, where he focused on digital signal processing and content security.
Event Details
- Date
- November 14, 2023
- Location
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Audience
- Business leaders, legal professionals, educators, policymakers