Travels from San Francisco, California, USA
Michelle Lee's speaking fee falls within range: $30,000 to $50,000
Very few people know Silicon Valley and the national innovative landscape as well as Michelle Lee. The former CEO of the US Patent and Trademark Office is thoroughly versed in multiple sides of the tech creation world thanks to an eclectic academic/work history as a Google executive, law school graduate, and MIT researcher specializing in A.I.
CEO and founder of Obsidian Strategies, which advises companies on identifying and implementing their most impactful AI opportunities, C-suite executive, Fortune 2 AI tech executive at Amazon, Google, public company board director, presidentially-appointed head of a $3+ billion government agency, MIT Artificial Intelligence Lab-trained computer scientist, Silicon Valley veteran experienced at scaling fast-growing companies with disruptive technologies, and top intellectual property expert. Leader with experience at the highest levels in technology, law, business and government who spent most of her career building and advising some of the country’s most innovative and valuable companies. Frequent keynote speaker on AI and AI governance.
Prior to her work in the public sector, Lee was the head of patent strategy at Google for 9 years. In her pivotal role as Deputy General Counsel, she had the challenging task of navigating patent laws as Google grew from a small relatively unknown company into the multinational tech giant it is today. Lee oversaw the acquisitions and integration of YouTube (video sharing for $1.6B), Keyhole (map analysis technology for Google Earth), GrandCentral (voice over IP), and many other companies.
Recognized by multiple media groups as one of the most influential women and leaders in tech and innovation, Lee is a powerful advocate for recruiting and retaining more female talent in STEM fields. She has been profiled in Bloomberg, CNET, the Washington Post the Los Angeles Times, Politico, the National Journal and numerous other business and legal publications.
As the first female to lead the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO); as an executive at Google; and as a computer scientist at MIT’s Artificial Intelligence Lab and HP’s Research Lab, Michelle Lee has constantly been in the forefront of the newest innovations that are disrupting our industries and driving spectacular growth in the world.
It started early on, growing up around the huge wave of Silicon Valley companies that were revolutionizing our world, inspiring her to build her own hand-held radio as a child. Her love of technology led her to simultaneously earn bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering and computer science from the MIT. She later earned her law degree at Stanford University’s School of Law because she wanted to work on the most cutting edge legal and policy issues facing high-tech companies.
Lee’s career is as remarkable as it is diverse. She is an MIT-trained computer scientist where she wrote her thesis on artificial intelligence, and an attorney and former law partner at Fenwick & West, Deputy General Counsel and Head of Patents and Patent Strategy for Google, co-founder of the Chief IP Counsels (ChIPs), the first woman Under Secretary of Commerce, and Director of the USPTO in our country’s 200+ year history.
Her focus on creating an environment that assures inventors and innovators the chance to grow and prosper, led her into government service as Director of the USPTO’s Silicon Valley satellite office. In 2015 she was unanimously confirmed by the US Senate as the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and took the helm of USPTO’s 10,000-employee organization. During her tenure, she led a 13,000 person agency with a $3.4 billion annual budget. She modernized the 225 year-old agency, streamlining the review processes and creating the maximum economic benefit for American inventors and businesses.
Michelle Lee is a remarkable speaker who offers unique perspectives resulting from her experiences in the trenches of innovation at the MIT AI and HP Research Labs, at Google during its rise from small company to global powerhouse, and as the head of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office where she witnessed first-hand inventions from across the globe. Her presentations not only journey thru the newest and most advance technologies, but also examine the business opportunities and regulations that will be key to our future. There is nobody else who has her unique experience at the highest levels as a scientist, business woman, attorney and government executive, and there is no presentation that is as effective at providing a complete picture for business leaders.
The first female leader of the United States Patent and Trademark Office, Michelle Lee imparts sound advice for getting your invention patented, techniques for avoiding legal tangles, and ways to tap more female talent for careers in STEM fields and entrepreneurship.
Lee surveys the numerous free resources the U.S. Patent Office makes available to aspiring entrepreneurs and inventors, many of which they can take advantage of earlier in the process than they might think. A common mistake she sees, especially among engineers, is that they overlook the significance of something they’ve created and don’t file a patent, only to end up at the receiving end of an infringement claim years later from someone who did file.
“Don’t self-guess. Don’t underestimate what you have,” she comments about calculating the appropriate time to file. “Earlier is better than later because you don’t want to forfeit rights unintentionally.”
As a seasoned tech executive and former head of one of the largest intellectual property offices in the world, Michelle Lee is a wealth of information on emerging technologies and their implications for your business or industry. Drawing from her time at Google and the MIT Artificial Intelligence Lab, Lee offers particular expertise in the changes and opportunities that AI is ushering in, both in the short and long term. Additionally, as a Stanford Law School graduate who carved her executive career navigating patent law for Google and the Federal Government, Lee is one of few technology speakers who can offer a credible legal perspective on processes related to patents, intellectual property, and trademarks.
Real Implications of Generative AI: The Promise and Perils of AI and How to Prepare for an AI-Centric World AI is powerfully transforming virtually every aspect of our business and personal lives including the way we analyze data, make predictions, generate content, delight our customers, grow revenue and increase operational efficiencies. However, there are challenges to using generative AI for organizations in terms of accuracy, copyright, bias, regulations, and more. Just because something can be achieved by AI doesn’t mean it should. Based upon her unique multi-disciplinary experiences from the top levels of technology, business, law and government, Michelle Lee shares with her audience concrete examples of incredibly powerful business applications of AI, some associated risks, and how to balance the two to lead organizations to leverage responsible, reliable and trustworthy AI applications. For this thought-provoking yet practical talk, Michelle Lee draws upon her experiences as a technologist and AI expert who has spent her career building and advising the most innovative AI/data-driven companies like Amazon and Google, her time as a top-ranked governmental official (Under Secretary of Commerce and Director of the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office) and her experiences as a lawyer and policy maker to examine the practical implications of Generative AI for organizations. Audiences will come away understanding where to lean-in on AI and Generative AI, where not to, and how to leverage AI for competitive advantage.
The First of Many Firsts The Honorable Michelle K. Lee is the first woman and first person of color to serve as the Under Secretary of Commerce and Director of the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, a 200+ year old governmental agency tasked with issuing patents and trademarks and advising the President on intellectual property policy. She was the first woman and Asian American partner in her law firm, and often the only person who looked like her in more ways than one. Ms. Lee shares her inspiring, yet improbable journey to the top levels of technology, law, business and government, and how individuals might chart their unique journeys, and how organizations can promote diversity and inclusion to drive innovation, business results and employee engagement.
What the Future Looks Like: Technology, Innovation, and Resulting Business Opportunities We are all excited (and maybe a little dizzy) from the constant barrage of new technologies. As the head of the US Patent and Trademark Office, Michelle Lee has overseen literally hundreds of thousands of the newest technologies and inventions, and the companies, entrepreneurs and inventors who are looking to change the world with their work. She delivers an enthralling journey into the future and provides guidelines to help leaders navigate this future.
AI: The Art of the Possible and Practical and 7 Lessons for Implementing AI in Your Company AI is one of the most transformative technologies of our generation. Computers can now create, “see,” “hear,” predict, and perform a wide variety of human tasks. Recent developments in AI (including generative AI, computer vision, machine learning, and robotics) will impact every business and aspect of our lives with both positive and negative effects. As a result, every organization needs to ask itself, what is its AI strategy? Michelle Lee is an MIT AI Lab-trained computer scientist who has spent her career advising some of our country’s most innovative AI/data-driven companies (Amazon and Google), which gives her unique perspectives on the applications of Artificial Intelligence and machine learning. In this engaging talk, Michelle cuts through the hype and brings the high-level talk down to reality with concrete examples and recommended actions. Audiences will come away with the 7 lessons for AI implementation that can help their companies increase operational efficiencies, enhance customer experiences, and generate new revenue.
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