US Patent and Trademark Office seeks public opinion on Intellectual Property involving AI

Recently the US Patent and Trademark Office published a second article seeking public opinion on Intellectual Property (IP) issues involving Artificial Intelligence (AI). Although AI is oft spoken as a well understood term in the technical community, results of machine learning, implementation of software, or other use of algorithms may be lumped into a discussion concerning AI. Regardless the scope of AI there are many unsettled IP questions involving AI. For example, when discussing IP and AI the dialogue is likely to include a few basic questions: Is it copyrightable? Is it patentable? Who is/are the author(s) or inventor(s)? Who owns the output? Although seemingly simple questions, the answers are not simply found in our current laws. However, although there may not be definitive answers to these questions, we can provide guidance on these issues. If your inventions involve the use of computers, algorithms or software, rather than assuming that your inventions are precluded from obtaining IP rights, we encourage a thoughtful analyses of your particular inventions to determine whether IP rights are a possibility.