U.S. patent office releases guidance on protections for ‘AI-assisted inventions’

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is seeking public comment on “inventorship guidance for inventions assisted by artificial intelligence” which explains how such inventions can qualify for patents, under a requirement in President Biden’s executive order on AI.

“This guidance explains that while AI-assisted inventions are not categorically unpatentable, the inventorship analysis should focus on human contributions, as patents function to incentivize and reward human ingenuity,” according to the guidance. “Patent protection may be sought for inventions for which a...