Can an AI be an inventor of a patent? DABUS/Thaler appeal comes before the UK Supreme Court

The UK Supreme Court has today (2 March 2023) heard the appeal by Dr Thaler against the Court of Appeal's dismissal of his appeal from the Comptroller of Patents in relation to a patent application for which the inventor was an AI (DABUS), and which the Comptroller had dismissed when Dr Thaler provided a statement of inventorship identifying an AI as the inventor. But why does it matter whether an AI can be an inventor of a patent?   Read more

Webinar: The Unified Patent Court (UPC) countdown has started – are you ready?

After years of debate and preparation, the Unified Patent Court (UPC) is set to start accepting cases on 1 June 2023. We invite you to join our pan-European IP team for a webinar on 29 March 2023 as we assess the biggest shake-up in the region's approach to IP for a generation. The changes will impact on those with European patents (EPs) as well as those selling into or operating in Europe even if they do not have EPs. Our leading lawyers from Düsseldorf, Milan, Paris and London will explain what you need to know and what you should be doing now to prepare for the UPC and unitary patent (UP). Read more

UK withdraws plans for broader Text and Data Mining (TDM) copyright and database right exception

The UK Minister for Science, Research and Innovation has stated in Parliament that the UK Government will not be proceeding with an extension to the UK's text and data mining exception that would have allowed, to allow much broader access to materials needed for machine learning and to train AI systems, which had been proposed in 2022 following the UK Government's consultation on changes to IP legislation that might be necessitated by the advent of AI. This means that the only exception for TDM will remain its use for non-commercial purposes, which in turn may mean that AI developers are more cautious about doing R&D work in the UK than they might have been if the broader exception had been pursued. Read more

Series: The IP in AI

Uses of machine learning and AI are expanding rapidly, and IP rights play a critical role in both regulating the use of AI and protecting the rights of inventors and creators. In this series, we will explore the key challenges governments worldwide are currently grappling with in order to provide the right level of protection … Read more

Innovation-based collaboration agreements: key IP considerations – an HSF video podcast for Practical Law

Collaborations for innovation are often established relatively quickly in pursuit of a commercial advantage. In this video recorded for Practical Law, Jonathan Turnbull and Rachel Montagnon share advice on managing such arrangements to maximise the likelihood of a successful outcome for all parties and in particular establishing the ownership, management and use of the IP involved. Read more

New website launched for the Unified Patent Court (UPC)

The Unified Patent Court has launched its official website today, replacing the UPC Preparatory Committee's original site at the same address: www.unified-patent-court.org.  The new website carries links to all the key legal documents establishing the Court and to the Procedural Rules, as well as information on the Court and Registry. Read more

The IP in NFTs – Strategies for protecting your brands and products in the metaverse

The creation ("minting") and sale and use of NFTs raises many IP issues which we have discussed in our previous posts in our IP in NFTs series. However, brand owners and product manufacturers must also be vigilant in monitoring the virtual marketplaces to ensure that third parties are not creating NFTs that infringe their own IP rights.  This is especially true where the company is considering releasing or has released NFTs, because the public will begin to associate the brand with NFTs (which could include infringing NFTs).  There are several strategies that companies could adopt to minimise this risk. Read more