This Week in Washington IP: Regulatory Tech in the Financial Industry, Resilient Disaster Tech Infrastructure and USPTO Invention-Con 2020

This week in Washington IP events, both house of Congress remain silent during their August recesses, but the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) kicks off Invention-Con 2020 on Thursday, featuring three days of programming designed for small businesses and independent inventors who want to learn more about obtaining IP and using it to achieve business success. Elsewhere, the Aspen Institute hosts two webinars featuring presentations on research projects related to climate change and disaster tech infrastructure, while the Peterson Institute for International Economics explores the growing field of regulatory and supervisory agency technologies which is sprouting up around the fintech sector.

Tuesday, August 18

The Aspen Institute

Successful Digital Learning

At 11:00 AM on Tuesday, online video webinar.

Virtual learning environments have taken on a new significance due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the constraints it has placed on instruction in typical classroom environments. This event, hosted by the Aspen Institute’s J. Christopher Stevens Virtual Exchange Initiative, a program designed to increase engagement between youths from locations around the globe, will discuss lessons learned from Stevens Initiative virtual exchange alumni regarding the various technological platforms currently being implemented by education systems across the world.

Wednesday, August 19 

Peterson Institute for International Economics

Fintech, Regtech, Suptech: Financial Supervision in the Digital Era

At 8:30 AM on Wednesday, online video webinar.

As financial institutions continue to explore to the possibilities of expanded customer services made available through financial technology, or fintech, tech developments for government regulators have also been on the rise. These systems, often referred to as “regtech” for managing regulatory processes or “suptech” for AI support of supervisory agencies, are posed to create a completely new digital future for the central banking industry. This event, which will explore the fast-moving technological environment for both financial institutions and the supervisory community, will feature a discussion with a panel including Benoit Coeuré, Head of BIS Innovation Hub, Bank for International Settlements; Stanley Fischer, PIIE Board Member; and hosted by Nicolas Véron, Senior Fellow, PIIE.

The Aspen Institute 

Aspen Tech Policy Hub Demo Day – Disaster Tech: Preparing for Unprecedented Crisis

At 9:00 AM on Wednesday, online video webinar.

The need for robust emergency technology infrastructure has been made even more clear by the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. This event, part of the Demo Day Video Series hosted by the Aspen Tech Policy Hub, will feature presentations from Policy Hub fellows who have worked on projects related to improved cellular network resiliency and helping businesses gain a better understanding of the climate impact from their cloud computing activities. Presenters at the event will include Raylene Yung, Engineering Leader, Payments, Product, and Global Expansion, Stripe; and Alexander “RoRo” Romero, Digital Services Expert, Defense Digital Service, and Technical Lead, Hack the Pentagon Program. Following these presentations, remarks will be offered by Carlos J. Castillo, Chief Development Officer, Tidal Basin Group, and former Acting Deputy Administrator for Resilience, Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The Aspen Institute

Innovators in Climate Change: A Virtual Exchange of Ideas

At 2:00 PM on Wednesday, online video webinar.

Innovation in climate change seeking to secure the future environmental health of the globe will require technological advances in disparate sectors like agriculture, water systems, healthcare and energy. This event, the latest in the Aspen Institute’s Innovators in ______: A Virtual Exchange of Ideas series, will explore recent developments and exciting new avenues of research for mitigating the effects of climate change and adapting to its new realities.

American Enterprise Institute

STEM Perspectives: Attitudes, Opportunities, and Barriers in America’s STEM Workforce

At 2:30 PM on Wednesday, online video webinar.

There has been a growing interest among our nation’s lawmakers to improve opportunities for traditionally underrepresented classes, including women and ethnic minorities, in our country’s innovation engine, some of which culminated in the passage of the SUCCESS Act of 2018. This event will explore the findings of a survey completed by AEI Research Fellows Daniel A. Cox and Brent Orrell which finds sharp stratification among demographics in America’s STEM workforce. Following their presentation is a discussion on challenges for women and minorities in STEM careers with a panel including Nicol Turner Lee, Director, Center for Technology Innovation, Brookings Institution; Audrey Van Bellegham, Business Lead, Facebook; and moderated by Orrell.

Thursday, August 20

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

Invention-Con 2020

At 12:00 PM on Thursday, online video webinar.

Thursday marks the start of a three-day convention at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office filled with various programming featuring agency directors and employees which is designed to help small businesses and individual inventors better understand the process of obtaining IP and leveraging it for business success. Programming at Invention-Con 2020, which is themed “Your IP: A power tool for building success,” will include sessions on filing provisional patent applications and trademark registration applications as well as panel discussions on licensing, market research and building successful business networks. Panel discussion moderators include Wayne Stacy, Director, Silicon Valley Regional USPTO; Corinne Hodges, CEO, Association of Women’s Business Council; David Sardi, Founder, DineroHispano; Bismarck Myrick, Director, Office of Equal Employment Opportunity and Diversity, USPTO; Warren Tuttle, President, United Inventors Association; Brittney Sickler, Senior Innovation Policy Advisor, U.S. Small Business Administration; and Dana Colarulli, Executive Director, Licensing Executive Society International.