Artificial Intelligence

PatentNext Blog

PatentNext is a weblog (“Blog”) about Patent and Intellectual Property (IP) law focusing on Next-generation and New Age technologies.

Recent Blog Posts

• Can Artificial Intelligence (AI) Generate Prior Art (e.g., a “Printed Publication”) pursuant to U.S. Patent Law? PatentNext Takeaway: Can text generated by artificial intelligence (AI) (e.g., an “AI-generated text”) constitute “prior art” pursuant to U.S. patent law? The answer to that question will impact whether AI-generated text can be used to preclude human inventions from issuing as patents in the United States. Third-party entities currently publish AI-generated text for the express purpose of preventing patent inventions from issuing. But this seems to run afoul of U.S. law requiring human “conception,” not to mention the U.S. Constitution,... More
• Patent Marking And Software Medical Devices (IPO Paper Announcement) I am excited to announce the publication of the Intellectual Property Owner (IPO)’s paper on Patent Marking regarding Software Medical Devices.  The paper provides an in-depth analysis of patent marking laws as they apply to software and medical devices. It covers multiple jurisdictions, including the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and Germany. The paper addresses various types of medical devices and software platforms, such as external, implantable, cloud-based devices, and third-party devices.  I contributed as an author and also in my... More
• Artificial Intelligence (AI) Patenting Handbook: Version 2.0 I am excited to announce the publication of the Intellectual Property Owner (IPO)’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) Patenting Handbook (the “AI Patenting Handbook”). This is a second, updated version of the AI patenting handbook.  I had the honor of participating as an author along with fellow IPO committee members of the Software Related Inventions Committee and the Artificial Intelligence (AI) & Other Emerging Technologies Committee. The AI Patenting Handbook may be found here and covers various topics regarding Artificial Intelligence (AI) and patenting... More
• The U.S. Patent Office provides Inventorship Guidance for AI-Assisted Inventions PatentNext Takeaway:  The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) recently issued examination guidance regarding patentability for artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted inventions. The guidance states that AI-assisted inventions are not “category unpatentable.” Instead, when a natural person provides a “significant contribution” to an invention, such an invention can be patentable even if an AI system contributed to the invention. While the guidance does not constitute law, it is grounded in law, i.e., the Federal Circuit’s so-called Pannu factors, which serve as a... More
• Improving a User Experience (UX) Alone Does Not Demonstrate a Technical Improvement for Demonstrating Patent Eligibility Satisfying Section 101 PatentNext Takeaway:  Demonstrating that a claimed invention provides an “improvement” to an underlying computing device is one of the best ways to achieve patent eligibility pursuant to Section 101 of U.S. Patent Law. However, the Federal Circuit has repeatedly held that an improvement to a “User Experience” (UX) alone is insufficient. The Federal Circuit recently issued yet another case, further cementing its position that improving a UX, without more, fails to demonstrate a technical improvement for satisfying Section 101 per... More
• Beyond Language: How Multimodal AI Sees the Bigger Picture AI chatbots have grown increasingly ubiquitous over the last year. For example, the basic version of ChatGPT is a conversational chatbot capable of understanding natural language inputs and generating highly coherent text responses. However, exciting new multimodal AI models like Google’s Gemini showcase more sophisticated capabilities. What distinguishes these two varieties of artificial intelligence? How may such multimodal systems further extend machine learning’s capacities? And by what means might novel implementations leveraging multiple modalities secure patent rights? Overview of AI Chatbots AI Chatbots... More
• UK’s High Court Opens The Door For More AI Inventions The UK’s Patents Act 1977 § 1(2)(c) excludes, from patent protection, “a program for a computer.”  Under this exclusion, the UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) rejected Emotional Perception AI Ltd.’s patent claim, which included an Artificial Neural Network (ANN).  However, on November 21, 2023, the High Court overturned the rejection, stating that the exclusion did not apply.  In response to the High Court’s decision, the UKIPO temporarily suspended its guidance on patent applications relating to AI inventions, and issued interim... More
• Intellectual Property (IP) impacts from President Biden’s Executive Order on Artificial Intelligence (AI) PatentNext Takeaway: The President’s recent Executive Order (EO) regarding artificial intelligence (AI) addresses, among other things, intellectual property (IP). The EO directs the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and U.S. Copyright Office to provide guidance and recommendations on IP issues of patent inventorship, patent eligibility, and copyright authorship in view of Artificial Intelligence (AI). While the guidance and recommendations will not have the force of law, they are nonetheless expected to include data and insights from stakeholders that could... More
• Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policy Considerations PatentNext Takeaway: Companies have increased access to artificial intelligence (AI) tools, such as ChatGPT and Github Copilot, which promise to improve the efficiency and work product output of employees. However, the adoption of such AI tools is not without risks, including the risk of loss of intellectual property (IP) rights. Accordingly, companies should proceed with caution by considering developing an AI policy to help eliminate or mitigate such risks. An AI policy can look similar to, and in many cases... More
• How U.S. Copyright Law on Artificial Intelligence (AI) Authorship Has Gone the Way of the Monkey PatentNext Takeaway: According to a recent district court decision, an artificial intelligence (AI) cannot be an “author” as that term is defined by U.S. copyright law. This decision follows the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal’s precedent regarding a “monkey selfie” photograph, where that court found that non-humans (e.g., monkeys) lack standing to sue under U.S. copyright law. The U.S. Copyright Office has since used such rulings to deny copyright registration of works that identify non-humans (i.e., AI systems) as... More