Abstract
In the article "Artificial Intelligence Owning Patents: A Worldwide Court Debate," Maria A. Penkwitz explores the legal conflict over whether AI can be a patent inventor. The central case involved DABUS, an AI system that independently created new inventions. Penkwitz's research highlights a significant global divide in legal perspectives.
While courts in the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia have rejected patents for AI-generated inventions, citing existing laws that require a human inventor, other nations are more progressive. Germany, for example, permits a human to be credited alongside the AI, and South Africa made a landmark ruling by granting a patent directly to DABUS.
The author argues that the U.S. should update its patent laws to recognize AI as a legitimate inventor. This change would support the constitutional goal of promoting scientific progress and would enable the U.S. to keep pace with a rapidly evolving technological landscape.
Repository Citation
Maria A. Penkwitz, Artificial Intelligence Owning Patents: A Worldwide Court Debate , 27 Marq. Intell. Prop. & Innovation L. Rev. 197 (2023).