Kick off the Successful Inventing series at Invention-Con on the Road, presented by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and the Licensing Executives Society - Silicon Valley Chapter (LES-SVC) and coming virtually and in person to USPTO's Silicon Valley Regional Office in the vibrant tech hub of San Jose, California. Tailored for the independent inventor community, our free marquee event brings inspiration and resources directly to you. Connect with fellow inventors and our experts in this epicenter of innovation.
In-person attendees, join a pre-event networking session with IP and small-business professionals from 11:30 a.m. to 12:35 p.m. to get answers to your patent and trademark questions. Light refreshments will be provided.
Come to Invention-Con San Jose to:
- Dive into the essentials of intellectual property (IP): Get a solid foundation in patents and trademarks to protect and supercharge your products and brands
- Gain insight from the pros: Hear firsthand accounts from successful entrepreneurs about their experiences licensing and commercializing their innovations
- Discover real-world IP journeys: Engage with a panel of inventors, business experts, and startup pioneers who will share how they navigated securing IP protection to turn concepts into marketplace realities
- Uncover IP's impact: Explore how IP is a cornerstone for innovation and a springboard for entrepreneurial success
- Learn about free legal services and support for patent and trademark applicants in the Bay Area
Access recordings of individual program segments below.
Agenda
(Subject to change. All times are Pacific Time)
Time | Topic | Speaker(s) |
---|---|---|
11:30 a.m. to 12:35 p.m. | Resources networking session (in-person only) Come talk to an expert! We'll have IP and small-business professionals on hand to answer your patent and trademark questions. | USPTO staff Licensing Executives Society - Silicon Valley Chapter (LES-SVC) representatives Small Business Development Center (SBDC) staff Patent and Trademark Resource Center (PTRC) staff |
12:45-12:50 p.m. | Welcome and USPTO leadership greeting | Deepak Dashairya, Office of Public Engagement, USPTO Mary Fuller, Regional Director of the Silicon Valley Regional Office, USPTO |
12:50-1:50 p.m. | Patent basics New to the patent process? You're in the right place. Learn what you need to know to apply for a patent, from search to submit. | Jolyn Eley, Administrator, Office of Patents Stakeholder Experience, USPTO Robert Hodge, Administrator, Stakeholder Education and Training Division, USPTO |
1:50-2:50 p.m. | Trademark basics If you're a small business owner or entrepreneur looking to protect your brand and product identities, this is the session for you. Get an overview of the federal trademark registration process. | Jason Lott, Managing Attorney for Trademarks Customer Outreach, USPTO |
2:50-3 p.m. | Break | |
3-3:45 p.m. | Successful inventing Get valuable tips on building a business from successful entrepreneurs in the Bay Area. | Mariane Bekker, Founder, Founders Bay William Seidel, Owner, America Invents LLC Ken Tarlow, President, Tarlow Design LLC Deepak Dashairya, Office of Public Engagement, USPTO (moderator) |
3:45-3:55 p.m. | What's next? Get a preview of the 2024 Successful Inventing series. | Larry Udell, Founder, Licensing Executives Society - Silicon Valley Chapter (LES-SVC) |
3:55-4 p.m. | Wrap-up and conclusion | Deepak Dashairya, Office of Public Engagement, USPTO (moderator) |
Speaker biographies
Mariane Bekker, Founder and CEO, Founders Bay
Mariane Bekker is a seasoned tech executive with over a decade of experience building high-performing engineering teams at renowned startups like New Relic and Mindbody. She's currently the founder and CEO of Founders Bay, a women-focused venture studio in Silicon Valley, where she works closely with founders to build their artificial intelligence (AI) powered products from the ground up. She also runs the most active community of female tech founders in the Bay Area on a mission to increase funding for women founders.
Deepak Dashairya, Office of Public Engagement, USPTO
Deepak Dashairya works in the Office of Public Engagement at the USPTO creating intellectual property (IP) awareness programs and managing outreach services to independent inventors, small businesses, entrepreneurs, makers, and universities across the nation. Dashairya is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) with over 20 years of federal service.
Before joining USPTO in June 2020, he served in leadership roles at the U.S. Department of State and the Department of Commerce, both in Washington D.C. and the Detroit Metropolitan Area, where he currently resides. Dashairya received a Bachelor of Science in statistics and a Master of Science in applied statistics from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
Jolyn Eley, Administrator, Office of Patents Stakeholder Experience, USPTO
Jolyn Eley joined the United States Patent and Trademark Office in 1988. During her 36 years with the USPTO, Ms. Eley has served in myriad roles in all areas of the office, including pre-examination and examination, giving her a wealth of knowledge in all parts of the patent process. Prior to joining the Office of Patents Stakeholder Experience, Stakeholder Support Division, Ms. Eley served as the administrator for the Office of Stakeholder Outreach and Patents Ombuds, a senior advisor to the Deputy Commissioner for Patents, as well as a strategic planning project manager.
Mary Fuller, Regional Director of the Silicon Valley Regional Office, USPTO
As Regional Director of the USPTO’s Silicon Valley Regional Office, Mary Fuller carries out the strategic direction of the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO and is responsible for leading the USPTO's Western regional office in San Jose, California. Focusing on the region and actively engaging with the community, Ms. Fuller ensures the USPTO’s initiatives and programs are tailored to the region's unique ecosystem of industries and stakeholders.
Robert Hodge, Administrator, Stakeholder Education and Training Division, USPTO
Robert Hodge joined the USPTO in August of 2004 examining fuel cells and batteries in Technology Center (TC) 1700. In October of 2014, he became a supervisory patent examiner in TC 3600, supervising examiners who review applications related to clutches, transmissions and hybrid drive systems. In December of 2018, he accepted a position to be one of the supervisory patent examiners for the Pro Se Examination Pilot Art Unit. In November 2023, he started as the Stakeholder Education and Training Division (SETD) Administrator for the Office of Patent Stakeholder Experience. Over the course of his career, he has participated in a variety of detail assignments as a Patent Training Academy trainer, special programs examiner for the Patent Cooperation Treaty legal office, Pro Se Assistance Program coordinator, and patent training advisor for SETD.
Prior to beginning his career at the USPTO, he worked at Teledyne Energy Systems developing fuel cell test standards. He also worked at Monsanto, performing research and development on the RoundUp® production process.
Jason Lott, Managing Attorney for Trademarks Customer Outreach, USPTO
Jason Lott is the Managing Attorney for Trademarks Customer Outreach at the USPTO where he specializes in helping small-business owners understand trademarks and the federal trademark registration process. He conceptualizes and delivers educational content using live presentations, creative videos, and other multimedia platforms. He also presents to experienced practitioners on advanced trademark topics, providing them the tools and expertise to better serve their clients. Jason began his career at the USPTO in 2000 as a trademark examining attorney.
William Seidel, Owner, America Invents LLC
William Seidel is an entrepreneur, an authority on marketing innovation, a court-approved expert witness, and an author. He changed home monitoring with the first baby monitor, improved food storage with the marketing of the FoodSaver, and revolutionized the Las Vegas soil industry with microbial inoculants. He was an innovator in the solar energy industry, the electronic toy industry, and the infomercial industry. He shares 28 marketing, business, and product awards, including five ADDYs, two Industrial Designs Society of American (IDSA) awards, and products currently in the Henry Ford Museum of Innovation and the Smithsonian. From toys and games to environmental breakthroughs and revolutionary technologies, he has developed thousands and licensed hundreds of products generating billions of dollars.
Ken Tarlow, President, Tarlow Design LLC
Ken has 40 years' experience in all phases of consumer product design and production. He has helped develop over 1,000 products worth over $1 billion in retail sales. Tarlow Design LLC has been in business for 30 years and has worked with hundreds of entrepreneurs and corporations to help them achieve success with their new product ideas. Tarlow Design maintains an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau (BBB).
Tarlow has been awarded 81 U.S. patents as an inventor or co-inventor and is a full member of the Industrial Designers Society of America.
Larry Udell, Founder, Licensing Executives Society - Silicon Valley Chapter (LES-SVC)
Larry Udell is well known as founder and chairman of the California Invention Center, created with federal funds in 1995 at California State University. As an adjunct professor of entrepreneurship, he has taught courses on new ventures for over 40 years at universities, both in the United States and in foreign countries on behalf of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). A member of the Licensing Executives Society since 1982, he founded the Silicon Valley Chapter in 2000.
Founder of over 30 new ventures, Professor Udell provides consulting to both start-ups and Fortune 500 companies and lectures frequently at inventor, corporate, and government functions throughout the U.S. He was the founder and president of Intellectual Properties International and vice president of American Innovators for Patent Reform, as well as a senior consultant to the General Patent Corporation. He also serves as a corporate officer and board member of companies and has mentored thousands of inventors and hundreds of new ventures.
View recordings of past programs on the Invention-Con event series page.
Invention-Con is the USPTO's annual conference for independent inventors, entrepreneurs, and small-business owners whose success depends on guarding their creative work. This program is presented by the USPTO's Office of Public Engagement.
For more information, or if you have any questions or comments, please email us at InnovationOutreach@uspto.gov.
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