Ahmed J. Davis, a principal with Fish & Richardson in Washington, D.C. Courtesy photo The Patent Oath and Its Legacy for Black Inventorship
African Americans continue to be underrepresented among patent holders as Black contributions to innovation have been historically overlooked.
February 16, 2023 at 11:09 AM
5 minute read
Intellectual Property
Black History Month is an opportunity to reflect on the challenges, achievements and contributions of African Americans throughout our history. One oft-overlooked area of Black history is the contributions of African Americans to America's innovation economy. Despite their remarkable ingenuity, African Americans long have been underrepresented among patent holders. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office does not collect demographic information from patent applications. However, a 2010 study estimated that between 1976 and 2008, African American inventors obtained just six patents per million people, compared with 235 per million for all U.S. inventors.
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