UK Supreme Court Confirms Only Humans or Companies can be Recognized as Inventors, Not AI Systems

Stephen Thaler's endeavor to attribute inventorship of patents to an AI system has been met with a definitive decision by the UK Supreme Court. Thaler, who is an American computer scientist, has been advocating for his AI system named DABUS (Device for the Autonomous Bootstrapping of Unified Sentience) to be acknowledged as the creator of certain inventions.

The Rejection from the UK Supreme Court

Despite Thaler's arguments, the highest court in the United Kingdom delivered a unanimous verdict denying his appeal. They upheld the decision that under British law, the entity applying for a patent must be recognized as a natural person—that is, a human being—or a company. The implication is clear: according to existing legislation, a machine or AI system cannot be granted legal recognition as an inventor.

Thaler's Global Campaign for AI Inventorship

Before the UK's verdict, Thaler had experienced a similar setback in the United States where the Supreme Court declined to entertain his challenge against the US Patent and Trademark Office's refusal to issue patents for AI-generated inventions. Thaler's efforts have ignited a global legal conversation around intellectual property rights in the age of artificial intelligence.

The Wider AI and Intellectual Property Landscape

AI innovations, such as generative AI services, have made headlines and garnered widespread interest, especially since the launch of tools like OpenAI's ChatGPT. Yet, intellectual property rights remain a complex and contentious issue in the face of AI's capabilities and reach. This month, notable companies like Meta Platforms faced allegations of using literary works without consent to train AI models, highlighting the continuous struggle within the industry to reconcile AI advancements with existing IP frameworks.

Development of Large Language Models (LLMs)

The tech industry continues to press forward, developing an array of Large Language Models (LLMs). With products from leading technology corporations like Meta, Alibaba, Baidu, OpenAI, Alphabet's Google, Samsung, and Getty Images, there is a clear sign of an accelerated pace in creating sophisticated AI tools capable of various functions, from text generation to complex image creation.

The UK Supreme Court's decision is another defining moment in the ongoing discourse around AI inventorship, potentially setting a precedent for future legal frameworks and discussions on AI and intellectual property rights across industries and borders.

patents, AI, law