Transition Document for the United States Patent and Trademark Office
Summary
This transition document provides over 25 actionable recommendations on the future of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), in order to support future federal leadership and enable their success. The document is the result of collaboration between the Day One Project and a group of veteran policymakers who convened virtually to produce recommendations related to the following three categories:
- Identifying specific policy and governance ideas that can be pursued in the first days and months of the next administration.
- Gathering “lessons learned” from those who have previously served in government to learn from past challenges and better inform future initiatives.
- Understanding key science and technology staffing and “talent” needs, and related challenges for the USPTO that can be addressed in the next administration.
The document also includes a cover memo which highlights some of the overarching key considerations for the future of the USPTO.
Contributors
- Margo A. Bagley
- Sharon Barner
- Brian Cassidy
- Colleen V. Chien
- Mark Allen Cohen
- Ayala Deutsch
- Ben Haber
- Philip G. Hampton
- Justin Hughes
- David J. Kappos
- Quentin Palfrey
- Arti K. Rai
- Teresa Stanek Rea
- Robert L. Stoll
- A. Christal Sheppard
- Saurabh Vishnubhakat
- Stephen Yelderman
At this inflection point, the choice is not between speed and safety but between ungoverned acceleration and a calculated momentum that allows our strategic AI advantage to be both sustained and secured.
Improved detection could strengthen deterrence, but only if accompanying hazards—automation bias, model hallucinations, exploitable software vulnerabilities, and the risk of eroding assured second‑strike capability—are well managed.
A dedicated and properly resourced national entity is essential for supporting the development of safe, secure, and trustworthy AI to drive widespread adoption, by providing sustained, independent technical assessments and emergency coordination.
Congress should establish a new grant program, coordinated by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, to assist state and local governments in addressing AI challenges.