In a landmark decision, the UK Supreme Court has affirmed that artificial intelligence (AI) cannot be recognised as an inventor in patent applications, upholding previous rulings from lower courts.
The case in question involved Dr Stephen Thaler and his AI, Dabus, which he claimed had invented a food container and a flashing light beacon.
The UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO) initially rejected this claim in 2019, stating that only a human can be named as an inventor, a stance subsequently supported by the High Court and the Court of Appeal.
"An inventor must be a person"
The Supreme Court, comprising five judges, unanimously dismissed Dr Thaler's appeal, reiterating that "an inventor must be a person" and thus excluding AI from holding patent rights.
This ruling does not address whether Dabus actually invented the items in question.
Dr Thaler, who views Dabus as a "conscious and sentient form of machine intelligence", expressed disappointment, underscoring the ongoing tension between human and machine intelligence.
The IPO welcomed the clarification brought by this judgment, though it acknowledged the need to keep the legal framework surrounding AI and patents under review.