Michelle Kwok Lee,[1] born 1965 in Santa Clara, California,[2] was a former Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

[3] During her senate confirmation hearing, Lee testified that she was first exposed to technology and innovation when she built a Heathkit radio with her father.

in electrical engineering and computer science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1989;[1][2][6] her master's thesis was on qualitative behavior of nonlinear circuits.

[12] In October 2014, President Barack Obama announced that he intended to nominate Lee to the office of Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property, heading the USPTO on a permanent basis.

[23] Upon Lee's resignation, USPTO Associate Solicitor Joseph Matal began performing the functions and duties of the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office until Andrei Iancu was sworn in.