"Although the peak of patents awarded are for those in midlife, there are inventors who are patenting well into later life."

Drug repurposing can redeem failed treatments and squeeze out new uses from others. But many pharmaceutical companies are hesitant to retool existing drugs without a high return on investment.

CORBEVAX is anticipated to significantly expand vaccine access to people in low- and middle-income countries.

Moderna claims its scientists alone invented the mRNA sequence used to produce its COVID-19 vaccine. The US government, which helped fund the drug, disagrees.

New research using patent data could help inform decision-makers by predicting which technologies are improving the fastest.

Boosting the number of female inventors isn't just a matter of fairness. Inventions by men are more likely to ignore women's needs.

The process will take months, if it's even approved. But just the threat of waiving intellectual property rights could spur faster action.

India and South Africa are pressing the World Trade Organization to waive patent rights to help ramp up vaccine production. There's a better solution.

Too many patents and too little information about them makes it hard for the system to weed out patents that unfairly block inventors.

The story of the invention in America typically features larger-than-life caricatures of white men like Thomas Edison while largely ignoring the contributions of women and people of color.