Like other patent offices, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is becoming a top priority for the USPTO. In the summer of 2019, the USPTO issued a ‘Request for Comments on Patenting Artificial Intelligence Inventions’. The questions covered several topics including the patent examination policy and also posed the question on whether new forms of IP protection are needed. The request received nearly 200 responses from individuals, corporations, associations, academia, and others.

The responses from Requests for Comments on Artificial Intelligence are available on the USPTO website at https://www.uspto.gov/initiatives/artificial-intelligence. Here you can also find information on the USPTO’s AI initiatives, public notices, AI-related events, and outside resources.

USPTO Director Andrei Iancu comments on the significance of AI technology saying, “One of the agency’s top priorities is to ensure that the United States maintains its leadership in innovation, especially in emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI). To that end, the USPTO has been actively engaging with the innovation community and experts in AI to determine whether further guidance is needed to promote the predictability and reliability of intellectual property rights relating to AI technology and to encourage further innovation in and around this critical area.”

In light of this ever-evolving technology there are sure to be more developments and announcements in the months to come from patent offices worldwide.