UK Supreme Court confirms that AI cannot be an inventor
The UK has become the first jurisdiction in which the highest court has confirmed that AI cannot be an inventor, in the long running “DABUS” cases.
The Supreme Court has upheld the earlier decision on this matter and has confirmed that the “inventor” within the meaning of the 1977 UK Patents Act must be a natural person, and that DABUS (the AI machine in question) is not a natural person – specifically “A machine is not a person” (paragraph 65).
This will, at least in part, now close this issue, as there is nothing more that can be done in UK to challenge this position. However, with the continuing advancement of AI and the increasing use of this technology in so many different fields, it seems likely that there will need to be some reconsideration of whether the existing law is still fit for purpose.
The judgement can be found at https://caselaw.nationalarchives.gov.uk/uksc/2023/49.