Anand Chakrabarty was an Indian American microbiologist and genetic engineer who worked at General Electric. He genetically engineered a bacterium capable of breaking down crude oil, an innovation that led to the landmark Supreme Court case Diamond v. Chakrabarty (1980). The Court’s ruling established that genetically modified living organisms could be patented under U.S. law, laying the legal foundation for the modern biotechnology industry. Chakrabarty’s research demonstrated how scientific innovation could reshape American patent law and the commercialization of biotechnology.
