Invention-Con San Jose

Mariane Bekker is a seasoned tech executive with over a decade of experience building high-performing engineering teams at renowned startups like New Relic and Mindbody. She's currently the founder and CEO of Founders Bay, a women-focused venture studio in Silicon Valley, where she works closely with founders to build their artificial intelligence (AI) powered products from the ground up. She also runs the most active community of female tech founders in the Bay Area on a mission to increase funding for women founders.

Deepak Dashairya works in the Office of Public Engagement at the USPTO creating intellectual property (IP) awareness programs and managing outreach services to independent inventors, small businesses, entrepreneurs, makers, and universities across the nation. Dashairya is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) with over 20 years of federal service.

Before joining USPTO in June 2020, he served in leadership roles at the U.S. Department of State and the Department of Commerce, both in Washington D.C. and the Detroit Metropolitan Area, where he currently resides. Dashairya received a Bachelor of Science in statistics and a Master of Science in applied statistics from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

Jolyn Eley joined the United States Patent and Trademark Office in 1988. During her 36 years with the USPTO, Ms. Eley has served in myriad roles in all areas of the office, including pre-examination and examination, giving her a wealth of knowledge in all parts of the patent process. Prior to joining the Office of Patents Stakeholder Experience, Stakeholder Support Division, Ms. Eley served as the administrator for the Office of Stakeholder Outreach and Patents Ombuds, a senior advisor to the Deputy Commissioner for Patents, as well as a strategic planning project manager.

As Regional Director of the USPTO’s Silicon Valley Regional Office, Mary Fuller carries out the strategic direction of the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO and is responsible for leading the USPTO's Western regional office in San Jose, California. Focusing on the region and actively engaging with the community, Ms. Fuller ensures the USPTO’s initiatives and programs are tailored to the region's unique ecosystem of industries and stakeholders.

Read full biography.

Robert Hodge joined the USPTO in August of 2004 examining fuel cells and batteries in Technology Center (TC) 1700. In October of 2014, he became a supervisory patent examiner in TC 3600, supervising examiners who review applications related to clutches, transmissions and hybrid drive systems. In December of 2018, he accepted a position to be one of the supervisory patent examiners for the Pro Se Examination Pilot Art Unit. In November 2023, he started as the Stakeholder Education and Training Division (SETD) Administrator for the Office of Patent Stakeholder Experience. Over the course of his career, he has participated in a variety of detail assignments as a Patent Training Academy trainer, special programs examiner for the Patent Cooperation Treaty legal office, Pro Se Assistance Program coordinator, and patent training advisor for SETD. 

Prior to beginning his career at the USPTO, he worked at Teledyne Energy Systems developing fuel cell test standards. He also worked at Monsanto, performing research and development on the RoundUp® production process. 

Jason Lott is the Managing Attorney for Trademarks Customer Outreach at the USPTO where he specializes in helping small-business owners understand trademarks and the federal trademark registration process. He conceptualizes and delivers educational content using live presentations, creative videos, and other multimedia platforms. He also presents to experienced practitioners on advanced trademark topics, providing them the tools and expertise to better serve their clients. Jason began his career at the USPTO in 2000 as a trademark examining attorney.

William Seidel is an entrepreneur, an authority on marketing innovation, a court-approved expert witness, and an author. He changed home monitoring with the first baby monitor, improved food storage with the marketing of the FoodSaver, and revolutionized the Las Vegas soil industry with microbial inoculants. He was an innovator in the solar energy industry, the electronic toy industry, and the infomercial industry. He shares 28 marketing, business, and product awards, including five ADDYs, two Industrial Designs Society of American (IDSA) awards, and products currently in the Henry Ford Museum of Innovation and the Smithsonian. From toys and games to environmental breakthroughs and revolutionary technologies, he has developed thousands and licensed hundreds of products generating billions of dollars. 

Ken has 40 years' experience in all phases of consumer product design and production. He has helped develop over 1,000 products worth over $1 billion in retail sales. Tarlow Design LLC has been in business for 30 years and has worked with hundreds of entrepreneurs and corporations to help them achieve success with their new product ideas. Tarlow Design maintains an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau (BBB). 

Tarlow has been awarded 81 U.S. patents as an inventor or co-inventor and is a full member of the Industrial Designers Society of America. 

Larry Udell is well known as founder and chairman of the California Invention Center, created with federal funds in 1995 at California State University. As an adjunct professor of entrepreneurship, he has taught courses on new ventures for over 40 years at universities, both in the United States and in foreign countries on behalf of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). A member of the Licensing Executives Society since 1982, he founded the Silicon Valley Chapter in 2000.

Founder of over 30 new ventures, Professor Udell provides consulting to both start-ups and Fortune 500 companies and lectures frequently at inventor, corporate, and government functions throughout the U.S. He was the founder and president of Intellectual Properties International and vice president of American Innovators for Patent Reform, as well as a senior consultant to the General Patent Corporation. He also serves as a corporate officer and board member of companies and has mentored thousands of inventors and hundreds of new ventures.