When we first covered Ex parte Desjardins, we noted that the decision, which was issued just days after Director John Squires took office, could mark the beginning of a new era for AI and software patent eligibility at the
On October 8, 2025, the Office announced the “Automated Search Pilot Program,” a new initiative that will use an internal AI tool to conduct a prior art search before an application undergoes substantive examination. The pilot program slated
In Ex parte Desjardins, Appeal 2024-000567 (Review Panel of the PTAB, Sept. 26, 2025), the PTAB Appeals Review Panel (“Review Panel”) vacated a decision of the PTAB that had sua sponte entered a new ground of rejection of claims relating
PatentNext Summary: The Desjardins decision, co-authored by new USPTO Director John Squires, signals a potential shift toward greater patent eligibility for AI and software innovations. By vacating a § 101 rejection and warning that “categorically excluding AI innovations from patent
PatentNext Summary: The USPTO issued “Reminders” for examiners in Tech Centers 2100/2600/3600 addressing §101 eligibility for software and Artificial Intelligence(AI) / Machine Learning (ML)-related inventions; while not changing the MPEP, the guidance is meant to sharpen examination practice. It clarifies
Seven years after the PTAB instituted the first AIA derivation proceeding, the Federal Circuit finally issued its first opinion in an appeal of a derivation decision, Global Health Solutions, LLC v. Selner, No. 23-2009 (Fed. Cir. 2025), affirming
PatentNext Summary: In a precedential decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit reversed a district court’s §101 dismissal of patent claims relating to an automated system for dumbbell weight selection and adjustment, finding that the claims were
PatentNext Summary: Recent rulings from the Northern District of California in Bartz v. Anthropic and Kadrey v. Meta provide the first substantive guidance on how the fair use doctrine applies to AI training, particularly for large language models (LLMs). Both
PatentNext Summary: In Brightex Bio-Photonics, LLC v. L’Oreal USA, Inc., the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California invalidated patent claims relating to AI-driven cosmetic recommendations, finding them directed to an abstract idea under 35 U.S.C. § 101.
PatentNext Summary: In two recent decisions, the Federal Circuit reaffirmed that merely applying artificial intelligence or digital techniques to a specific “field of use” does not satisfy patent eligibility under 35 U.S.C. § 101. In Recentive Analytics v. Fox Corp.,
