Current activities of the Initiative for Open Innovation

Patent literature and innovation in Africa

Intellectual Property Watch, a non-profit independent news service focused on international intellectual property policies, spoke with Richard Jefferson, Director of the IOI, about the many possibilities that patent literature can provide countries in Africa.

Read the full interview at Intellectual Property Watch

The IOI in The Economist - July 16 2009

The Initiative for Open Innovation (IOI) is gaining worldwide momentum. The following article is from the July 18 - 24, 2009 edition of The Economist, page 54.

"[IOI] ...will combine open-access software and sophisticated search features to make the confusing thicket of drugs patents accessible to researchers the world over."

Read the full article in The Economist

Launch of the IOI - July 13 2009

Richard Jefferson launched the Initiative for Open Innovation in an invited speech at the UN-sponsored meeting on Intellectual Property and Public Policy Issues, in Geneva July 13 & 14, 2009. The Initiative for Open Innovation is a new global facility dedicated to making the world’s patent systems more transparent, inclusive and navigable.

Download the Press Release (info)

Opening up patent information

The major work product of the IOI is the Patent Lens - a worldwide, open-access, free full-text patent informatics resource. The Patent Lens can search and retrieve the full-text of nearly ten million patent documents from US, Europe, Australia and WIPO, their status and counterparts in up to 70 countries, and over 77 million DNA, RNA and protein sequences disclosed in patents.

The IOI will integrate full-text patent data from all nations and in all languages, link and embed scientific and technical literature, and  associate regulatory and business entity information with patents. On this foundational platform, the IOI will construct, curate and refine innovation landscapes through the creation and use of new open web applications.  Experts in their field will be able to contribute to the building of landscapes - tools for navigation and decision support - which can then be used to drive new innovation for public good.

The Inaugural Meeting of the International Advisory Council (IAC)

The inaugural meeting of the IAC was held from August 16 - 19, 2009 in North Queensland, Australia. Experts, innovation leaders and specialists from around the world met to discuss, inform and help refine the goals of the IOI and work together towards a long-term strategic plan.

Find out more about the IAC on our Support page.