To Get More Women and Minority Inventors, We Need Data

This commentary was originally published in International Business Times on May 29, 2022. 

In the coming weeks, negotiators from the U.S. Senate will meet with their House counterparts to hash out a compromise on a critical piece of legislation—one that could make our nation more innovative and economically competitive.

The U.S. Innovation and Competition Act (USICA) would boost federal funding for scientific research by $250 billion. That's great, but it also needs to do something else: help create an environment in which all potential U.S. inventors are equipped for success, regardless of gender, race, or economic background. To do that, we need better information on who is doing the inventing in the United States. USICA should include provisions that would help gather it.