Andy Grove questions the future of the patent system
May 4th, 2009
During his acceptance speech for the lifetime achievement award from the National Inventors Hall of Fame, Dr. Grove cautioned the audience on the future of the patent system, likening it’s foundation to the instability that led to the crumbling of Wall Street (clipped from CNET News):
“Patents themselves have become products. They’re instruments of investment traded on a separate market, often by speculators motivated by the highest financial return on their investment.”
Considering the source of advice – we should all take heed, and consider Thomas Jefferson’s litmus test carefully as we look to the future of innovation: “The true value of an invention is its usefulness to the public“.