The U.S. patent system impacts the lives and affects the work of every person and business across the country—including startups. But when the system becomes too complex or burdensome, when bad actors and invalid patents stand in the way of innovation, the system can block the progress it is supposed to foster. And oftentimes small businesses, the public, and even policymakers are in the dark about the system’s problems, frustrating our ability to solve them. That’s why during our second annual Patent Quality Week, Engine and the Developers Alliance hosted a conversation with startup leaders across the country about the various, sometimes harmful, ways they experience the patent system.
