Tampa, FL – April 22, 2024
The National Academy of Inventors (NAI) is deeply honored to announce that they have been awarded the 2024 Science and Society Award from the National Science Board (NSB). The Academy will be recognized for this achievement during the National Science Foundation Awards Gala taking place May 1st in Washington, DC, at the Renwick Gallery, a branch of the Smithsonian American Art Museum and a National Historic Landmark.
The Science and Society Award, established in 1996, honors individuals and groups that have made substantial contributions to increasing public understanding and appreciation of science and engineering in the United States. NAI is being recognized for the impact the Academy has made in engaging and inclusive initiatives to strengthen and diversify the innovation economy.
The National Science Board advises the President and the Congress on education and policy matters related to science and engineering and establishes the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) policies within the framework set forth by the President and the Congress.
The NAI was founded to recognize and encourage inventors with U.S. patents, enhance the visibility of academic technology and innovation, encourage the disclosure of intellectual property, educate and mentor innovative students, and to create wider public understanding of how its members’ inventions benefit society.
“Innovation has fueled the American economy since its inception. The Academy was created in 2010 in part to combat the Great Recession by encouraging and supporting academic and institutional inventors across the nation to translate their research to the marketplace”, said Paul Sanberg, founder and president of NAI. “As a modern Academy we are able to evolve to meet the present and future needs of our Members. We are especially excited about our current work with the USPTO through our Joint-Project Agreement to identify and invest in underrepresented innovators and support the call from NSF to activate the potential of the “missing millions” to drive the impact of invention and innovation nationwide.”
The Academy was founded at the University of South Florida as a local chapter of innovators, when Sanberg served as Senior Vice President of Research and Innovation. Today the Academy has grown to over 300 Member Institutions worldwide. NAI’s Institutional Membership includes significant representation from the Association of American Universities, Association of Public Land-Grant Universities, R1, R2, and comprehensive universities, HBCUs, minority institutions, non-profit research institutes, and governmental agencies. Currently, NAI Individual Membership is over 4,600 members strong and includes approximately 1900 NAI Fellows. Election to NAI Fellow status is the highest professional distinction accorded solely to academic inventors. The Academy’s Fellows are incredible role models and include 51 Nobel Laureates, 68 National Medal of Technology and Innovation recipients, and 56 National Inventors Hall of Fame inductees, among other great inventors. Technologies invented by NAI Fellows have created over 1 million jobs, been the basis of over 3,200 companies and startups, and generated over $3 trillion in revenue.
“I’m so proud of how far we’ve come in just over a decade,” said Sanberg. “We are honored to be recognized with the Science and Society Award from the NSB and look forward to continuing to grow and evolve the Academy to address the needs of the innovation ecosystem.”
NAI Members and partners will gather in Raleigh, North Carolina on June 16th-18th for NAI’s 13th Annual Conference, featuring 3 days of compelling discussions and presentations on emerging technologies and practices to drive inclusive innovation. To learn more about the conference, visit https://academyofinventors.org/annual-conference/.