AI-Designed Drug Nears Approval With Human Inventors Only
A drug designed using artificial intelligence has entered late-stage clinical trials, and its associated patents strategically sidestep the AI inventorship debate by naming only human scientists.
An AI-designed drug has entered Phase III clinical trials, a late and costly stage of human testing before a company can seek regulatory approval. The patents on the candidate name only human scientists as inventors, deliberately sidestepping the contentious legal question of whether an AI can be an inventor under patent law. This real-world development provides a pragmatic industry response to a question courts and patent offices worldwide are still grappling with. While litigation like the Thaler case has sought to establish AI inventorship, the USPTO and EPO have consistently held that only natural persons can be inventors. This company's approach offers a viable path for securing protection for AI-assisted discoveries without challenging the status quo. Counsel should note this emerging practice for mitigating risk while leveraging AI in R&D.