Defense Intelligence Reference Document Maverick Inventor Versus Corporate Inventor

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• Individual with formal training and little money.
• Individual with formal training and some money.
• Small group (usually two or three) of knowledgeable inventors with money.
"Formal training" is assumed to be in the specific scientific or engineering discipline in
which the invention would naturally be situated. Of course, in the last entry in the
above list, the maverick inventor begins to look more like the "corporate inventor," but
the idea should be clear.
Although this paper does not dwell on the personality of the maverick inventor, it is
useful to remind ourselves that the maverick inventor is by definition a loner both in
social and scientific/technical areas. In an online article (Reference 3), maverick
inventor Dean Kamen 1 writes: "It's not that they're brilliant or well-educated ... They
work all the time. They don't let failure demoralize or destroy them. They pick
themselves up and keep going and eventually, every once in a while, one of your ideas
actually breaks through and works, and it makes all that stuff seem worthwhile."
Kamen's article goes on to state: "Stubborn, delusionally optimistic, creative, fearless,
flexible and focused are some of the ways psychologists and business people describe
the personality of the maverick ... 'You need to be in denial or in ignorance about the
huge challenges you face,' laughs Guy Kawasaki, a former Apple executive and
entrepreneur who's starting the self-described "magazine rack" alltop.com. 'You have to
believe that it wouldn't be hard for you to succeed."'
Corporate Inventor
The corporate inventor is a part of and relies on a large organization, conveniently
labeled a think tank, to both stimulate and sustain him. There is constant interaction
between like-minded innovators that serves both as a stimulus to explore new areas
and as a much-needed "dead-end detector." Usually, sufficient cash and equipment are
on hand, especially when the desired innovation is being funded externally. These think
tanks may be government, military, academic, corporate, or private. The closest model
to the freedom associated with the maverick inventor is usually found in a university
setting, although a number of privately sponsored institutions exist (for example,
Perimeter Institute in Waterloo, Canada). At least until recently, academic institutions
prided themselves in the freedom granted to their research scientists and engineers.
Table 1 provides examples of the various types of think tanks.
1 Dean Kamen is an experienced inventor in the medical field, where his inventions include the AutoSyringe. Among
his many other inventions are devices using the Stirling cycle for energy generation and water purification and the
Segway Personal Transporter.
2
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