The Patentability of AI-Generated Technical Solutions and Institutional Responses: Chinese Perspective vs. Other Countries

The continuously enhanced generative capabilities of artificial intelligence (AI) are challenging the existing patent system. There are still some issues, such as whether AI can be considered an inventor, whether technical solutions generated by AI are patentable, and how ownership should be allocated. AI-generated technical solutions fall under the category of patentable subject matter. Specifically, if they meet the requirements of the “three criteria,” they can become the subject of patent rights. Regarding the issue of AI’s eligibility as an inventor, a parallel technical generation registration system for AI should be established, with the current inventor system maintained in parallel. Concerning patent ownership issues, the assignable subjects of patent rights should be limited to the binary subjects of users and investors. Contractual agreements should take precedence to ensure contractual freedom, and ownership should generally be attributed to the user if no agreement exists. Additionally, a specialized fast-track review and authorization mechanism should be designed for AI-generated technical solutions, given the unique nature of AI-generated solutions. Moreover, their protection periods should be appropriately shortened to ensure a balance of interests. Furthermore, a disclosure system should be built across the entire lifecycle to prevent and mitigate risks that may arise during the machine generation of technical solutions, patent applications, patent authorizations, and dissemination stages.