Stephen Key is an award-winning inventor, renowned intellectual property strategist, lifelong entrepreneur, author, speaker, and columnist.
Stephen has over 20 patents in his name and the dozens of concepts he has brought to market have retailed in Walmart, 7-Eleven, and Disney stores and parks worldwide and been endorsed by Michael Jordan, Alex Trebek, and Taylor Swift. He has defended his patents in federal court against the largest toy company in the world, Lego’s.
In 1999, he cofounded inventRight to teach others his unique process for harnessing the power of open innovation and the licensing business model.
His bestselling book about how to license an idea, One Simple Idea by McGraw-Hill, has been translated into six languages.
He has written more than 1,000 articles about intellectual property strategy, product licensing, and entrepreneurship for publications online including Forbes, Inc., and Entrepreneur.
Universities and governmental organizations around the world regularly invite him to teach them inventRight’s unique processes for commercializing new product ideas.
Stephen has won over 20 industry awards, including two Edison Awards and the Most Influential and Inspiring Leader Of All Time by the WorldIP Forum in 2022.
In 2018, he was recognized as a AAAS-Lemelson Invention Ambassador. In 2020, he became a founding member of the United States Intellectual Property Alliance.
In 2022, Stephen contributed to “Cases in IP Strategy: Industry Lessons Learned” from the non-profit Michelson Institute for IP.
Currently, he’s part of the team responsible for launching a new sustainable packaging innovation that replaces the need to use plastic to carry beverages called Fishbone.
Post Views: 356 I’ve been teaching a course, inventRight, with Andrew Krauss for nearly 15 years now. It’s a pleasure. We’re dedicated to teaching people ... Read more.
Post Views: 365 What inventor hasn’t dreamed of having a big box retailer sell their product? When Walmart decided to order one of my inventions years ago, I ... Read more.
Post Views: 362 So you have an invention you want to protect. Before you call an attorney, spend some time familiarizing yourself with the options available to ... Read more.
Post Views: 418 Maybe it’s superstitious, but I’ll tell you this: Having a ritual before a big event has been very helpful to me. When you’ve been wor... Read more.
Post Views: 329 Your dream is realized! That’s it right there — your idea, a product now, on store shelves. Something you can touch. Over and over again... Read more.
Post Views: 387 Working from home definitely has its benefits, but I’d be the first to admit there are also disadvantages. I’ve worked out of my home on and... Read more.
Post Views: 347 The most successful inventors I know are passionate about their ideas. Makes sense, doesn’t it? Becoming an entrepreneur isn’t for the faint... Read more.
Post Views: 347 If you dread making cold calls, you’re not alone. I mean, who doesn’t? The good news is: You don’t have to. Not anymore. LinkedIn has chan... Read more.
Post Views: 347 Communication technologies have never been better. We fire off texts throughout the day. We’re able to respond to emails just moments after we... Read more.
Post Views: 377 Every year around this time I get a little nostalgic for Toy Fair. My first ‘real’ job, at age 27, was at the toy startup Worlds of Wonder. ... Read more.