The Math of Innovation: Striving for Fairness in a Challenging Unbalanced Patent System

Innovation often resembles solving a complex equation: you combine hard work, knowledge, and a positive attitude, hoping these elements yield success. But what happens when the system reduces the sum of your efforts, leaving you struggling just to stay in the equation?

This is my story—a journey of accomplishment, hardship, resilience, and ultimately, destruction. More importantly, it’s a call to action. To protect the backbone of American ingenuity, we need a united effort among inventors, advocates, supportive legislators, the Small Business Administration (SBA), and organizations like US Inventor, Spark Innovation and Association for American Innovation. By all working together, we can ensure that the future of innovation in the United States remains both vibrant and accessible.

Building Success, One Calculation at a Time

Let’s illustrate the process of innovation in numerical form, assigning each letter of the alphabet a number: A=1, B=2, C=3, …, Z=26.

When I started 360Heros Inc., I set out to create an affordable 360° camera that would redefine how we capture the world around us. With a clear vision, I channeled my energy into the following equation for success:

• H-A-R-D-W-O-R-K = 98%
  (H=8) + (A=1) + (R=18) + (D=4) + (W=23) + (O=15) + (R=18) + (K=11) = 98%
  Tireless effort transformed a concept into a real product.
• K-N-O-W-L-E-D-G-E = 96%
  (K=11) + (N=14) + (O=15) + (W=23) + (L=12) + (E=5) + (D=4) + (G=7) + (E=5) = 96%
  Expertise and understanding laid a solid foundation, allowing an idea to mature into a patented creation.
• A-T-T-I-T-U-D-E = 100%
  (A=1) + (T=20) + (T=20) + (I=9) + (T=20) + (U=21) + (D=4) + (E=5) = 100%
  A positive outlook rounded out the equation, enabling me to push through adversity and believe in my product’s potential.

These values propelled my invention to worldwide recognition. 360Heros even secured a listing in the 2015 Guinness Book of World Records, a testament to the power of combining hard work, knowledge, and attitude. It felt as though my formula for success was complete—until new factors changed the balance.

When the System Subtracts

Shortly after our product launch, a major competitor—GoPro—initiated measures that surpassed what one might consider a standard business dispute. Market observers, including those at Motley Fool, identified these actions as part of a broader plan to eliminate up-and-coming competitors. Even more telling were direct statements attributed to GoPro: “Even if you have funding or those working on contingency, our goal is to ensure you will not survive the fight.” This was not merely a legal battle; it was a calculated strategy to overwhelm and extinguish genuine innovation through sheer financial force.

What’s especially troubling is that our current system, legally allows—and even enables—such predatory tactics. Instead of fostering the kind of environment where creative entrepreneurs can negotiate and thrive, this atmosphere puts resourceful inventors at a profound disadvantage, threatening the very spirit of innovation that drives our future.

Suddenly, the path forward ceased to be defined by the strength of the idea itself. Instead, it became a struggle against a complex patent systems framework where influence, financial might, and intricate legal procedures overshadow innovation itself.

In this new environment, unfamiliar elements appeared—factors that overshadowed the merit of the idea itself:

• B-U-L-L-S-H-I-T = 103%
  (B=2) + (U=21) + (L=12) + (L=12) + (S=19) + (H=8) + (I=9) + (T=20) = 103%
  Let this represent unwarranted legal obstacles and procedural hurdles that benefit those with greater financial resources rather than those with better ideas.
• A-S-S-K-I-S-S-I-N-G = 118%
  (A=1) + (S=19) + (S=19) + (K=11) + (I=9) + (S=19) + (S=19) + (I=9) + (N=14) + (G=7) = 118%
  This symbolizes the undue influence and deference toward large, well-connected players, rather than nurturing breakthrough innovations.

With these higher values came greater imbalances. The fairness of the system faltered. Despite holding a valid patent, the legal structure did not effectively safeguard your invention. It became evident that even when you devote yourself completely—through hard work, knowledge, and a positive attitude—you can still face an overwhelming and unjust defeat.

This isn’t about poor financial choices on the part of small businesses; it’s about a landscape where genuine innovators are forced to shoulder a disproportionate burden. Over time, the sheer magnitude of prolonged litigation and mounting challenges meant I could no longer guide the very enterprise I had worked so hard to create. Like many small business owners in similar circumstances, I had to step away from daily operations, no longer able to maintain the balance required to move the business forward.

Why Organizations Like US Inventor, Spark Innovation, and Engaged Leaders Matter

If the SBA and our political leaders fail to grasp the severity of the challenges facing American inventors, organizations like US Inventor, Spark Innovation and Association for American Innovation must step in to ensure these decision-makers fully understand the situation. These groups serve as vital champions of authentic creativity, working in tandem with supportive government agencies and engaged policymakers. Together, they strive to establish balanced patent policies and fair regulations that enable small inventors to compete on equal terms with larger corporations.

Without their collective advocacy, measures like the PREVAIL Act could gain traction, making it increasingly difficult for American innovators to thrive—and, in turn, weakening our nation’s potential for growth and advancement. If leaders continue to overlook how heavily the system is stacked against U.S. inventors, other nations, such as China, will continue to outpace us, ultimately challenging our position as a global leader in innovation.

We must remember what really drives American progress: the inventors who dare to dream. To protect that spirit, we must highlight the values that foster true advancement:

• D-E-D-I-C-A-T-I-O-N = 104%
  (D=4) + (E=5) + (D=4) + (I=9) + (C=3) + (A=1) + (T=20) + (I=9) + (O=15) + (N=14) = 104%
  Dedication propels us beyond obstacles, inspiring exceptional effort.
• I-N-N-O-V-A-T-I-O-N = 123%
  (I=9) + (N=14) + (N=14) + (O=15) + (V=22) + (A=1) + (T=20) + (I=9) + (O=15) + (N=14) = 123%
  Innovation fuels our ascent to new heights, where imagination, not market dominance, should prevail.
• P-E-R-S-E-V-E-R-A-N-C-E = 131%
  (P=16) + (E=5) + (R=18) + (S=19) + (E=5) + (V=22) + (E=5) + (R=18) + (A=1) + (N=14) + (C=3) + (E=5) = 131%
  Perseverance is the quality that ensures we persist in spite of obstacles, believing that integrity and creativity can outlast intimidation.

Rewriting the Equation: Protecting the SBA’s Investment in American Innovation

Real-world equations aren’t always fair, but for small business owners, the stakes extend well beyond balance sheets. A company’s collapse often takes with it a founder’s lifetime of work, personal security, and even the promise of future contributions to the innovation ecosystem.

My company, supported in part by the Small Business Administration (SBA), was intended to grow and enrich America’s inventive landscape. Yet the system that should protect this effort allowed intense legal pressures to overtake our mission. The result was not only the loss of a business, but also the dismantling of a livelihood built over decades. It wasn’t poor financial planning that led to this outcome—it was the pursuit of an innovative idea in an environment that too often rewards relentless legal attacks over genuine creativity.

• R-E-S-I-L-I-E-N-C-E = 109%
  (R=18) + (E=5) + (S=19) + (I=9) + (L=12) + (I=9) + (E=5) + (N=14) + (C=3) + (E=5) = 109%
  Resilience becomes essential, a necessary element when so much is at stake and the rules of the game seem misaligned with the goals of innovation.

A Lesson in Market Power

Despite my dedication and hard-earned achievements, 360Heros couldn’t withstand nearly a decade of intense legal contests. It’s telling that large companies can leverage extensive legal and political resources, overshadowing the passionate work of smaller innovators—even those the SBA aims to support.

This dynamic is not merely unfortunate; it’s a risk to our nation’s economic future. If sustained, such an environment discourages future inventors from pursuing their dreams. By inadvertently making room for foreign competitors to dominate, we threaten America’s edge in global innovation.

A Call to Action for the SBA and All Stakeholders

My experience is not unique—it’s a cautionary tale and a direct plea to the Small Business Administration and all agencies tasked with championing entrepreneurship. The SBA’s mission is to foster American entrepreneurship and nurture innovative ventures. How can we collectively celebrate small businesses if their valuable ideas can be systematically eroded by those with greater power and resources?

If we allow these imbalances to persist, inventors who fuel our nation’s progress may begin to question whether their efforts are truly worthwhile. Why invest in a dream when the system offers no meaningful protection? Why struggle to grow an innovative enterprise if legal complexities overshadow honest ingenuity?

Furthermore, if an inventor has the support of the SBA, why must also the inventor face the same devastating outcome as if they were without the SBA backing? When the system fails to shield a promising company, leaving it vulnerable to predatory tactics, it also undermines the SBA’s investment in American innovation—ultimately harming the very entrepreneurs it was created to uplift.

We must rally around organizations like US Inventor, Spark Innovation and Association for American Innovation and urge our political leaders—and others—to all join forces, ensuring that creativity rather than legal intimidation shapes our nation’s inventive spirit. We also call on the SBA, which has invested in America’s entrepreneurs, to actively protect that investment by standing with inventors. If a company can be forced out of existence through aggressive tactics beyond its control, must we also accept that the inventor—the individual driving innovation—be driven to personal ruin as well?

Let’s encourage our local representatives, senators, and relevant agencies to hear the voices of inventors, support balanced patent laws, and cultivate a marketplace that embraces fresh ideas rather than suppressing them. Together, we can strengthen the environment that allows American innovation to thrive.

This is the new equation we must solve together:

• E-X-P-O-N-E-N-T-I-A-L = 135%
  (E=5) + (X=24) + (P=16) + (O=15) + (N=14) + (E=5) + (N=14) + (T=20) + (I=9) + (A=1) + (L=12) = 135%
  Innovation thrives when the potential for growth is exponential—when every new idea can flourish, rather than being halted.

The math is simple: If the system favors only those at the top and subtracts opportunities from emerging visionaries, America’s capacity to innovate shrinks. It’s time we rebalance the equation so that entrepreneurs and their supporters—like the SBA—can confidently invest in the future. Only by ensuring fairness, strengthening protections, and encouraging creativity can we build a stronger America for generations to come.