WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Intellectual Property Chris Coons (D.D.D.) yesterday discussed the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on innovation and how to use AI in ways that foster innovation. Chaired public hearings focused on exploring ways to regulate. This is to ensure that the United States remains competitive.
Entitled “Artificial Intelligence and Intellectual Property — Part I: Patents, Innovation, and Competition,” the hearing will bring together intellectual property (IP) experts from business and academia to help companies drive innovation. We discussed how we are using AI to Patent law issues related to AI inventions and how the law needs to be adapted to account for AI technology. and steps the United States can take to establish itself as a world leader on AI and intellectual property. During the hearing, Senator Koons discussed AI’s key benefits for innovation. The importance of establishing U.S. leadership in AI. The need for policies that consider data rights to protect AI systems and clarify patent eligibility law.
The subcommittee plans to hold hearings on the intersection of AI and copyright law later this year.
You can watch the video and transcript of Senator Koons’ opening remarks below.
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Senator Koons: I would like to call this hearing for an order. Thank you for joining us today.thanks to ranking members [Thom] Tyris [R-N.C.] And the staff of your company who have worked very well with me to bring this hearing to an agreement.As you can see from the audience, this is a topic of wide-ranging interest, and I would like to ask my colleagues and friends, the Senators, [Mazie] Hirono [D-Hawaii]I look forward to a fulfilling public hearing on the subject of artificial intelligence and intellectual property.
Let’s take a look at some of the recent developments in AI, especially patents. AI, innovation, and the impact of US competitiveness. Don’t get me wrong. AI is raising new issues across a broad spectrum of IP policy, and today is the first of a series of public hearings in which the subcommittee will examine the intersection of artificial intelligence and IP law and policy. We all have heard of various tools such as ChatGPT and DALL-E. Impressive new generative AI tools have opened up so many creative avenues and raised many concerns. While these tools are just a few of many common uses, generative AI is already being put to practical use to help solve a wide range of very serious and practical problems.
Drug development is just one particularly compelling example. Over the past few decades, antibiotic discovery and development has become increasingly difficult and expensive. Many researchers have given up because new antibiotics cannot overcome the threat of antibiotic-induced disease. In fact, no class of antibiotics has been introduced since the 1980s. Enter AI. Researcher at MIT [Massachusetts Institute of Technology] We recently trained an AI model using a large collection of diverse molecules and used the model to create new potent antibiotics that are effective against antibiotic-resistant bacteria. This discovery did not take many years. It didn’t take weeks. It took several days. I share this story because much of the conversation about AI focuses on potentially harmful uses of the technology, such as the threat of misinformation and bias. While it’s important to highlight these uses, I also think we need to act cautiously to set important safety nets. It’s important to shed light on how AI is being used for innovation. Drug development is one compelling example. Others include its role in efforts such as combating climate change, addressing computer chip shortages, and creating renewable energy sources. These innovations raise new and interesting and complex patent law issues, such as whether or not AI-facilitated innovations are and should be patentable, and if so, who should be listed as the inventor. cause Many AI-generated inventions are currently not patentable in the United States. The Supreme Court has ruled that the law does not permit the inclusion of non-human inventors in patent applications.
The decisions Congress makes about whether and how to protect AI-related innovation will also have a significant impact on America’s innovation and competitiveness. Rather than encouraging innovators to look to other countries with more favorable laws to protect AI-generated inventions and other emerging technologies, we encourage AI-generated innovation to stay here in the United States. We need to make sure we have a system of rights to do so. Despite the important role of IP in AI innovation, IP considerations are largely absent from the proposed AI regulatory framework. Ignoring IP to regulate AI can have serious unintended consequences. [our] innovation ecosystem, national security, and economic competitiveness. In contrast, competitors such as China recognize IP policy as an important tool in their national strategy against AI and other emerging technologies. China is stepping up the role of its patent and trademark offices and exploring data rights as a new form of AI intellectual property protection.
So what can we do? There are some initial steps we can take to secure U.S. leadership on AI policy. I think it’s important to include intellectual property considerations in the ongoing AI regulatory framework and see the USPTO come to the table. Patent eligibility law needs to change to protect critical AI innovations. I think my colleagues would agree. And finally, we need to consider whether other changes to patent law or new and unique protections are necessary to foster innovation in AI and emerging technologies.
I look forward to working with you today on these issues with the help of Senator Tillis. We have a great panel with diverse opinions and perspectives. You’ll probably feel like you have 5 minutes of crunch time to explain them. We thank you for the lengthy testimony you have submitted and look forward to your separate summary.
