UKIPO: ‘We all need to embrace AI’

UKIPO deputy CEO addresses CITMA conference in London | IPO records upsurge in demand for services in the face of “an inexorable change in the technology landscape” | AI-powered tools can create more efficient, seamless user experience, deputy CEO tells delegates. 

Forget the notion that the legal world moves slowly or is resistant to change. A year can make a big difference in IP, and even more so when artificial intelligence (AI) is involved.

This message was at the heart of the Chartered Institute of Trademark Attorneys spring conference held in London yesterday (March 21), which explored the rapid advances in new technologies and their potential, as well as challenges, for the legal sector.

Delivering the keynote speech at the event, Andy Bartlett, deputy chief executive of the UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO), noted how people were “only just beginning to talk about a then little-known tool, ChatGPT this time last year”.

An ‘inexorable change’

Fast forward to this year’s annual event, “Navigating the digital frontier”, and more than half of the delegates in a packed hall promptly raised their hands when asked if they had ever used OpenAI’s generative AI tool—or whether they currently use it.

This display, continued Bartlett, showed clearly that “a lot has happened” in relation to AI in recent months, and “it's something that we will all need to embrace”.

Further, Bartlett revealed that a surge in the demand for trademarks and designs at the IPO had emerged in tandem with this “inexorable change” in the technological landscape.

“We're really pleased to say that we see really strong, increasing demand in the trademark area—the demand for trademarks increased by 3% this year [compared to last year], and we’ve seen a whopping 20% increase in the design space.”

But, Bartlett added, some pressing questions remain.

“AI remains on everyone's lips at the moment, but we all face the constant challenge working with or keeping pace with technology.”

Guidance in the metaverse

In particular, he pointed to the conundrum posed by the notable rise in trademark applications for digital assets associated with blockchain technology and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

“Of course, digital assets are nothing new, but the increase of NFTs in digital assets has created some challenges in current trademark applications,” said Bartlett.

According to the IPO, trademark applicants are increasingly seeking to use virtual reality-related terms—with 2.4% of all UK IPO applications in 2022 including such a phrase.

In an analysis of 4.1 million trademark applications by the IPO, applications using terms such as ‘virtual environments’ and ‘Web3’ increased fivefold from 2014 to 2017, with the higher volume maintained in the years since then.

This is why, continued Bartlett, the IPO took action in becoming the first IP office in the world to provide detailed guidance on rights issues in the metaverse in April 2023.

According to the guidance, NFTs will not be accepted as a classification term alone, as “without an indication of the asset to which the NFT relates, the term is inherently vague”.

However, the IPO decided to accept certain terminology in class 9, including digital art, downloadable graphics and downloadable software that is “authenticated by NFTs”.

The guidance coincided with the government’s launch of a white paper on AI in the UK, to “drive responsible innovation and maintain public trust” in the technology.

Further, Bartlett told delegates that the  IPO has created a specialist technology team looking across all IP rights, “to help us identify the challenges as they arise”.

These initiatives, said Bartlett, “helps the office assess the role AI is playing in consumer decision-making, and how we are going to deploy AI in the services that we offer.”

Working ‘smarter and harder’

Tackling counterfeiters as well as keeping tabs on their new and creative tactics is another daunting task on the IPO’s to-do list. If IP offices are embracing new technologies, criminal gangs are doing the same–with gusto.

“IP crime remains an ongoing challenge for us all, and we are seeing those involved in IP crime becoming increasingly sophisticated,” said Bartlett.

“Undoubtedly, they're making use of the latest technologies to support their activity and target consumers, so that means we have to work even harder and smarter than them to stay ahead.”

In February 2024, the office commissioned and published research exposing a high demand for counterfeits among consumers that pose a risk to their health and safety, principally beauty and hygiene products, electrical goods or electronics, toys, and alcohol.

In light of these findings, Bartlett warned that ongoing education and awareness campaigns were essential.

“Our focus is on highlighting the harm to the public and our economy and educating people about how to spot a fake and report, but we are not naive about the scale of the challenge or how hard it is to effect change,” he said.

Turning to the IPO’s high-profile five-year programme to rehaul its digital services—the One IPO transformation programme—Bartlett shared his hope that using the office’s services would soon “be as easy and secure as logging into your online banking”.

In fact, Bartlett suggested that AI is already playing a pivotal role in realising this aim.

“We’ve been using AI-powered tools for quite some time. In particular, we have a tool that helps individuals and businesses improve their chances of registering a trademark,” he explained.

“It does this by checking the mark against similar marks that have been filed before and also identifies aspects of the mark that may not be are not appropriate, eg, offensive words.”

AI can assist, but not submit

In concluding, Bartlett downplayed any concerns that AI could potentially usurp IP practitioners by taking on their daily tasks or duties.

He did, however, say that the office is open to trademark attorneys drafting an application with the help of AI.

But Bartlett firmly rejected any suggestion an AI could submit an application independently, cautioning that its role must be purely “assistive”.

“We need to have that level of oversight by humans, along with a sense check,” he said. “Overall, I see AI’s greatest potential or use is in helping us in our everyday lives, rather than just doing the work for us.”