Artificial intelligence (AI) as a creator of Intellectual Property (IP) - Intellectual Property Legislation

 

According to industry experts, these trends will double annually over the next ten years. This has sparked a heated debate about how we should view copyrights and industrial design rights with regard to these machines and whether their inventions or innovations should be subject to the same laws that apply to people. This leaves us in a legal limbo where experts from all around the world are attempting to come to a consensus. So much so that WIPO has requested comments on a draught on IP and AL rules from industry professionals, and this endeavour has already gotten up to 250 expert opinions from all around the world.

Is it conceivable that intellectual property may one day be produced by artificial intelligence?

A very diverse range of technologies are being combined to produce AI. We would like to draw attention to the fact that artificial intelligence (AI) systems, such as computers or robots, are now able to make decisions through the systematisation of data that go beyond the initial human programming that may have generated them. Even findings that appear to fit the definition of labour under the current intellectual property laws can be produced by these machines.

This new paradigm should lead us to stop and think, as it is entirely feasible that these robots or computer programmes may develop into independent producers of original works. The creation of music, the writing of news articles, the painting of canvases, or the planning of architectural blueprints, among other duties, may no longer be purely human endeavours. As a result of the developments being made in this field, it is now clear that it was only a matter of time until AI ended up igniting a lively discussion regarding the boundaries of intellectual property.

According to the law, works of technological intelligence that are intended to communicate ideas are protected, with the author's creativity and effort serving as the standard. Particularly when it comes to refining thoughts with the aid of expressive components that are an extension of his or her personality. To offer you a better understanding, it has been decided that if an author employs AI as a tool to increase his or her knowledge base, what they generate will still be regarded as their original work. However, we should determine that the author is a co-author if they employ the artificial intelligence system as their primary creative tool because they are the one who programmed it.

Others believe that because intellectual property, such as trademarks, brand names, patents, and/or industrial models, which is intended to protect copyrights, does not offer protection in situations when a machine creates anything on its own, the final product should belong to the public domain.

Without a question, innovation is a key factor in both social and economic progress. This is unquestionably the reason why the WIPO's annual Global Innovation Index study has established itself as a benchmark for measuring innovative activity and its effects on economic growth and development globally.

As is evident, artificial intelligence is generating a lively discussion in the creative community; the answer may lie in attributing authorship to the computer and rights to its owner. The Bern Convention, the global agreement that governs the protection of copyrights over literary and artistic works, is the international treaty that covers every nation in the world. There is still a long way to go before any consensus is reached, but in any case, that consensus should pay attention to the Bern Convention's provisions.

Apr 21, 2023

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