Consider the process of patenting an invention. In 1807, Eli Whitney, a farm laborer and teacher, secured a patent for the cotton gin. Today, the cost of obtaining a patent can soar to $10,000–$20,000, making it nearly impossible for independent inventors to afford. That’s where AI steps in.

By automating tedious tasks—like formatting a patent to meet USPTO standards—AI can cut costs by a factor of ten while improving quality. This isn’t just a win for inventors; lawyers, too, can focus on higher-value work instead of drowning in paperwork.

But patents are just the beginning. Wild Ducks harnesses AI for content creation, risk assessments, structured searches, marketing, and social media automation—eliminating repetitive work so people can focus on what they love.

As a retired IBM Fellow, Jerry draws inspiration from Thomas J. Watson Jr., IBM’s former CEO, who once said:

“I talk a lot around here about wild ducks... It takes a few wild ducks to make any business go, because if you don’t have the fellows with the new ideas willing to buck the managerial trends and shock them into doing something new and better… the business pretty well slows down.”

Wild Ducks thrive by challenging the status quo— pushing boundaries, questioning assumptions, and creating new possibilities. That’s exactly what we do.

Jerry is a retired IBM Fellow with more than 38 years of experience as a software innovator and open-source advocate.

He currently lectures at North Carolina State University and leads Wild Ducks, LLC, where he consults, develops, and secures intellectual property in trustworthy AI, blockchain, and cybersecurity.

Jerry holds more than 100 U.S. patents. Among his most notable is the “Someone is typing…” indicator, now used billions of times daily in instant messaging.

Jerry is the author of the Think series, which includes Think Blockchain and Think Artificial Intelligence, as well as co-author of Blockchain for Business and The Art of Automation.