INNOVATION • THROUGH
"COLORED"
EYES
INNOVATION SERIES KEYNOTE
What America’s overlooked Black inventors teach us about
innovation, resilience, problem-solving, and AI.
innovation, resilience, problem-solving, and AI.
“Through ‘COLORED’ Eyes is not only about historical Black inventors. It reveals hidden networks, relationships, influences, and intersections between Black inventors and iconic historical figures—and shows why human ingenuity still matters in an AI-driven world.”
SIGNATURE KEYNOTE | 45–50 MINUTES
The List That Changed the World.
The book, Through “COLORED” Eyes, resurrects the inspiring story of Henry E. Baker—a U.S. Patent Office examiner who, in 1913, compiled the first comprehensive record of African American inventors. In this visual, story-driven keynote, Reggie K. Smith reveals how innovation grows through vision, ingenuity, relationships, and problem-solving—and how those same principles can help today’s innovators use AI to expand human creativity, uncover new possibilities, and develop meaningful solutions.
SPEAKING TOPICS
- Baker’s List: Henry E. Baker’s biography as a case study in rejection, redirection, and legacy—reshaping the perception of Black inventors worldwide.
- Intersections—The historical intersections between Black inventors and historical figures that shifted the course of history.
- From Human Ingenuity to AI—What America’s overlooked Black inventors teach us about creative problem-solving, innovation networks, and the distinctly human abilities we must preserve in the age of AI.
AUDIENCE TAKEAWAYS
- See innovation as an ecosystem—not a lone-genius event—shaped by relationships, influence, and shared knowledge.
- Recognize overlooked contributors—400+ documented inventions.
- Think like an inventor in the age of AI—turn constraints into design prompts. Use AI to develop and refine human ideas into useful solutions.
IDEAL FOR
Corporate ERGs • Innovation and leadership events • Engineering and STEMconferences • Universities and HBCUs • Educator development • Museums, libraries, and youth organizations
BOOK + PROGRAM
THROUGH "COLORED" EYES
The Story of Henry E. Baker, The Man From Mississippi Who Created A List That Changed The World
The Story of Henry E. Baker, The Man From Mississippi Who Created A List That Changed The World
Inside the Book
- Henry E. Baker’s story
- 10 featured biographical sketches of Black inventors
- 10 19th-century patent drawings 3D-illustrated
- Documented list of 400+ inventions
- Patent basics for new innovators
FORMAT
Keynote + Q&A
Sponsored audience experience*
Book signing/meet-and-greet
Sponsored audience experience*
Book signing/meet-and-greet
BOOKING &
*BOOK ORDERS (50+ COPIES)
*BOOK ORDERS (50+ COPIES)
Through “COLORED” Eyes is available for bulk purchase—ideal for Black History Month, bookstores, corporate ERG and DEI gifting, client gifts, STEM gift shops, and library systems.
ABOUT REGGIE
Reggie K. Smith is a Nashville-based creative technologist with four decades in video production and graphic communications. A University of Southern Mississippi graduate and Mississippi native, he spent 20 years researching early African American inventors—bringing that work to print in this, his debut book.
BOOK REGGIE
