Bridging the Disconnect - IP Memes Matter

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In Spider-Man 2002, newspaper editor J. Jonah Jameson shouts an iconic line:  "Run down to the patent office, copyright the name "Green Goblin." I want a quarter every time someone says it." But here's the thing... that's not how copyrights work. Even smart, engaged people mix up basic IP concepts, and that confusion has real economic consequences. 

Corey Salsberg, Vice President and Global Head of IP Affairs at Novartis, joins Bruce Berman to unpack why intellectual property, despite driving over 44 percent of American GDP and a third of the US workforce, remains poorly understood by the public and even most members of Congress. Salsberg traces the disconnect to a lack of education, a communication problem in a soundbite culture, and a tendency to see patents as barricades rather than bridges. He also digs into what AI means for inventorship, why the pharmaceutical patent cliff threatens future medicines, and why human connection still matters in a world of AI generated content. The strongest idea: we already have a great IP story, we just need to tell it better.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Roughly one third of the American workforce is tied up in IP driven industries, and IP is linked to over 44 percent of US GDP.
• Most people, including the large majority of members of Congress, receive little to no education about how patents and copyrights actually work.
• The US patent system is written into the Constitution and was the third act passed by the very first Congress.
• Only a human being can currently be recognized as an inventor because inventorship requires recognizing and appreciating the significance of what was created, something AI cannot do on its own.
• Roughly 90 percent of drug candidates that are scientifically validated still fail in clinical trials, and only 20 to 30 percent of approved medicines ever turn a profit.
• Developing a new medicine can cost between two and five billion dollars, which is why patent protection is needed to offset the financial risk of R&D.
• A pharmaceutical patent cliff between 2025 and 2030 threatens significant revenue that funds future drug development.
• Framing patents as an economic bridge rather than a barricade can help build common ground with people who hold anti-IP views.
• Congress passed the Bayh-Dole Act, created the Federal Circuit, and passed the Hatch-Waxman Act in the early 1980s specifically to help the US regain global leadership in innovation.
• Everyday products, from Levi's jeans to Eddie Van Halen's guitar equipment, carry an IP story that can make patents and copyrights relatable to non-lawyers.

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Learn more about CIPU: understandingip.org
Connect with Corey Salsberg: https://www.linkedin.com/in/corey-salsberg/

00:00 Why IP stories go untold
00:46 Introducing Corey Salsberg
01:28 Where the IP disconnect begins
02:16 The historical roots of the patent system
03:19 One third of US jobs tied to IP
04:12 The education gap, even in law school
05:09 The Spider-Man copyright joke
05:42 IP's communication and attention span problem
07:44 Mark Twain's crab quote on patents
08:33 Politicians and the declining IP voice
09:19 IP through four industrial revolutions
10:22 The surprisingly recent age of modern medicine
12:02 What is and isn't patentable
13:29 The Chakrabarty decision and modern biotech
14:28 Gene patents and the ACLU case
15:17 AI, inventorship, and who owns a patent
17:44 Why AI cannot legally be an inventor
19:11 Patents as a bridge, not a barricade
21:18 Drug pricing is not an IP issue
22:35 The multi-billion dollar cost of a new medicine
23:47 Aspirin, antibiotics, and early pharma patents
24:19 Why most medicines never become profitable
25:38 AI, R&D efficiency, and future drug possibilities
27:28 Federal research cuts and the academia gap
29:41 Private funding and its risks for science
30:12 Why human connection still matters
32:09 Corey's father and his path into patent law
34:10 Do C-suites really understand IP?
36:17 IP champions among industry CEOs
38:03 What's happening with IP reform in Congress
40:38 How the US became a pharma innovation leader
43:19 Teaching IP as part of general education
45:33 The story behind Levi's rivets and jeans
46:29 Eddie Van Halen's guitar patents
48:04 AI is turning everyone into an IP creator
49:08 Taylor Swift, the NFL, and IP advocacy
49:30 Dolly Parton's rights of publicity
50:02 Closing thoughts and what's next

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Understanding IP Matters is brought to you by the nonprofit Center for Intellectual Property Understanding (CIPU) with generous support from its partners and sponsors. The podcast provides leading innovators and experts the space to share their IP stories.

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