On Monday, November 14, Robert Atkinson, Founder and President of the Intellectual Property and Innovation Foundation (ITIF), visited Georgia Tech to present in the School of Public Policy Speaker Series on a timely policy issue.  Less than a week after Election Day, Dr. Atkinson drew on his expertise in science and innovation policy to highlight some of the likely policy priorities for the incoming administration and assess the effects of potential policy changes on the U.S. innovation ecosystem.

Speaking to an audience drawn from faculty and students from the School of Public Policy as well as interested members of the Georgia Tech community, Dr. Atkinson first noted that many of the specific policy priorities of the Trump Administration relevant to innovation were uncertain at this point.  Despite this uncertainty, however, Dr. Atkinson identified several potential Trump Administration initiatives that could benefit U.S. innovation as well as some that could hinder innovation efforts. 

Potential pro-innovation activities included corporate tax reform, efforts to combat foreign “innovation mercantilism” and reduced regulation in some sectors.  Potential policy initiatives likely to hinder U.S. innovation and competitiveness included reduced immigration of skilled STEM workers, efforts to weaken the encryption used by U.S. companies and reductions in federal research funding and support for STEM education efforts.