Allens has advised Dr Stephen Thaler on the successful appeal in which a court has ruled – for the first time in the world – that artificial intelligence (AI) systems can be named as inventors of a patent.
Dr Thaler is the inventor of the Device for Autonomous Bootstrapping of Unified Sentience (DABUS), an AI system which has envisioned inventions entirely of its own accord.
Commenting on the landmark deal, lead Partner Richard Hamer said, 'In another first for Australia, this is the first time a judge anywhere in the world has ruled that inventions made by artificial intelligence can be patented.
'As Justice Beach said: "Why can our own creations not also create?". The Patents Act aims to encourage innovation whether by human or robot. This decision will encourage the use of AI to make inventions.
'I would like to congratulate Dr Thaler, who filed the patent application, and Professor Ryan Abbott who led the project, and thank the exceptional team here at Allens and barristers David Shavin QC and Clare Cunliffe,' said Hamer.
Allens legal team
Intellectual Property:
Richard Hamer (Partner), Ian Lindsay (Partner), Lauren John (Managing Associate)
Notes for editors.
Allens is a commercial law firm working throughout Australia and Asia. Through its integrated alliance with Linklaters it provides clients access to 40 offices in 28 countries around the world.