In a previous post, we compared the inventor i-index scores for the famous inventors – Edison and Tesla. In this article, we show how one can explore the key inventors in specific technology areas or companies, based on their i-indices. We do this for a couple of technologies – Neural Networks and Speech Recognition, and companies – with Stryker and Tesla as examples.
Key Inventors – For Specific Technologies
Cars that are self-driven and robots that can feel and predict the world around them are no more a subject matter of science fiction. These and other such advancements are taking shape with Artificial Intelligence techniques such as Neural Computing.
Neural Computing uses Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) – that simulate the human learning processes – to solve complex problems and create self-learning systems. Most of the recent advances in AI technologies rely on neural computing as ANNs do not require task-specific programming and improve over time by learning from data and using corrective feedback loops.
In 2017, Google launched an initiative to use its new technology, AutoML, to develop artificial intelligence. Google claims this new technology can build more powerful and efficient networks.
AI is also disrupting speech and voice recognition technologies. AI-powered speech recognition is now being used across industry sectors and applications such as communications, healthcare, automated vehicles and entertainment. Recently, Amazon’s Alexa Speech group scientists have reduced the errors in speech recognition using AI technologies.
We take a look at 15 of the key inventors in these technology areas – Neural Networks and Speech Recognition – and compare their Inventor Index scores.
Neural Networks
Our Inventor Index gave the following results (Table 1). James H. Brauker, a biomedical scientist tops the list with an i-index of 133.99. In the list, at number 11, is Dharmendra S. Modha, who is an IBM Fellow and IBM Chief Scientist for Brain-inspired Computing. Dr. Modha has authored over 60 papers and has more than 100 patent disclosures to his credit.
Table 1: Key Inventors in Neural Networks [Click on image to enlarge]
Speech Recognition
Table 2 lists the inventors in Speech recognition technologies with some of the highest i-index scores. Wei-Ge Chen at the second position possesses an i-index of 42.38. He is a software architect in the Advanced Development Team at Microsoft Research and holds over 40 issued and 50 pending patents, and has published around 20 articles.
Table 1: Key Inventors in Speech Recognition [Click on image to enlarge]
Key Inventors – In Specific Companies
We also look at two companies known for their innovation in different technology sectors – Stryker and Tesla – and the key inventors in those companies with the highest i-indices.
Stryker, one of the world’s leading medical technology companies, has been on the Fortune’s World’s Most Admired Companies list for over fifteen years in a row. The company owns a product portfolio of close to 60,000 products and a patent portfolio of over 8,000 patents. Table 3 lists the key inventors in the company based on their inventor index.
Table 1: Key Inventors in Stryker [Click on image to enlarge]
After making its patents public, Elon Musk now announces that Tesla plans to launch a robo-taxi network in 2020. Musk observed that he envisions a future where the robotaxis would drop people off, return home on their own, park themselves and automatically recharge the battery. Tracking Tesla is a worldwide pastime and the company never fails to surprise the industry-watchers. Table 4 lists the key inventors in the company with the highest i-index scores.
Table 1: Key Inventors in Tesla [Click on image to enlarge]
The i-index aims to provide inventors with a means to obtain an objective measure of the impact of their patents and showcase this to the world. The calculation of the i-index incorporates both the number of new ideas the inventor has generated as well as how far-reaching they are.
In the present digital world, patents become an effective tool to create an impact. You can use i-index as a tool to effectively build your brand by including it in your profile, social media platforms or your website. The i-index is emblematic of the inventor’s innovation footprint and companies can judiciously employ it, along with other criteria, to search for talent as they look to build their R&D teams to deliver new technologies and products and power their growth.
