On March 24th, the Congressional Inventions Project (CIP) kicked off the third day of programming at IP Watchdog LIVE 2026 in Arlington, Virginia, by hosting A Conversation with Congressman Kevin Kiley, who co-chairs the Congressional Inventions Caucus (CIC). CIP Board Member James Edwards moderated a panel with Rep. Kiley, Taylor Betts, the Congressional Invention Caucus’s Senate Liaison and Legislative Correspondent, and fellow CIP Board Member Charles Sauer, discussing the critical need for ongoing IP education within the halls of Congress. The discussion was a timely reminder of the essential role that high-quality educational products and events play in shaping effective innovation policy.
Here are the key takeaways.
Why the Caucus Matters: Innovation, Invention, and Global Competitiveness
At its core, the Congressional Inventions Caucus exists because invention matters. Innovation is the engine of American prosperity, and intellectual property rights are the keystone of our ability to compete on the global stage. The Caucus — a bipartisan, bicameral group formed in 2015 — has spent a decade building bridges between lawmakers and the inventor community, and that work has never been more urgent.
While separate from the bipartisan, bicameral Congressional Inventions Caucus, CIP is dedicated to advancing similar interests in topics, policies, and goals that promote American innovation and competitiveness, aligning with those of the Caucus. During the discussion, Rep. Kiley illustrated how CIP’s fresh approach is catching the attention of staffers and lawmakers alike. He highlighted to the audience how the Congressional Inventions Project is the only organization to have brought a double-dutch jump rope machine to the Hill to help illustrate the connection between IP and products and services we all know and love. The effort is not a gimmick — it’s a statement. CIP is committed to thinking outside the box, generating genuine excitement around IP, and creating memorable entry points for Members and staff who might otherwise never engage with these issues.
Meeting Inventors Changes Everything
Rep. Kiley put it simply and powerfully: “What is compelling for so many people is meeting the inventors. Hearing individual stories and how individuals pour their heart and soul into their invention and ultimately produce something of great value is so compelling and deserves to be told.”
That human element is central to the approach of both CIC and CIP. Whether it’s a small inventor from a rural state, a startup founder navigating the patent system, or an individual who mortgaged their future on a single breakthrough idea — these stories change minds. The panel highlighted how Senator Daines, a champion of the Caucus in the Senate and a strong bipartisan partner, has consistently pointed to rural inventors in his home state of Montana as proof that America’s inventive spirit is alive and well far beyond Silicon Valley or Boston’s Route 128. Though Senator Daines will be retiring, the Caucus’s Senate presence will continue — a testament to the lasting institutional momentum his work has built.
The Stakes Are Higher Than Ever
The panel made clear that the urgency behind this work is not abstract. China is actively working to leapfrog the United States in innovation, and a policy environment that fails to protect and incentivize invention at home plays directly into that dynamic. Meanwhile, artificial intelligence is reshaping virtually every sector, bringing with it a new wave of unresolved IP questions — from authorship and patentability to liability and licensing. These twin pressures are generating broader public and legislative interest in IP policy than we’ve seen in years.
Rep. Kiley emphasized that effective IP policy doesn’t happen in a vacuum. Lawmakers need a shared reference point before they can meaningfully engage with specific legislative challenges. Without that foundation, conversations about critical legislation risk going nowhere, or worse, going in the wrong direction.
Stay Engaged — The Work Continues
The message from the panel to everyone in that room was direct: IP issues are as salient and important as ever, and the community of people who have been fighting for strong, sensible IP policy needs to stay in the fight. The momentum is real, the interest is growing, and the stakes are only rising.
If you’re not already part of the Congressional Inventions Project, now is the time to get involved. Please visit congressionalinventionsproject.org to learn how you can support this work and help ensure that America’s inventors continue to have a voice where it matters most — in the halls of Congress.
