Innovation: Large numbers of AI-related patents showcase dynamism of creation

China's top intellectual property regulator is rapidly ramping up efforts to safeguard and support enterprises in the fast-evolving world of artificial intelligence, in order to give Chinese companies a competitive edge, according to a senior official.

"AI is a key driver of the new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation. Its development has been nothing short of explosive," said Shen Changyu, head of the China National Intellectual Property Administration, in an exclusive interview with China Daily ahead of World Intellectual Property Day, which falls on Saturday.

How to deal with AI in accordance with the law and in terms of IP rights, ownership and responsibility has become a pressing issue for the country.

"It is urgent and crucial that we adapt our IP protection mechanism to keep pace with the rapid progress," Shen said.

A few weeks earlier, Shen visited Zhejiang province to conduct research on the IP protection work for startups in the AI industry. At a symposium held during his tour, he paid special attention to the IP protection needs of AI companies, and listened to their opinions and suggestions regarding the challenges that they face.

To address the challenges encountered by many AI startups in navigating patent and trademark applications, Shen asked IP administrators to maintain regular communication with the businesses to understand more about their IP protection needs, in order to help them solve problems and stimulate innovation.

"We're planning to establish a patent pool for AI large models to support the sustainable growth of enterprises," Shen said.

Stronger support

"AI innovators, as well as other businesses going global, will benefit from our more professional and efficient services in handling IP issues overseas, with stronger support provided for preventing IP risks in the course of their international expansions."

The administration will maintain an open and cooperative stance to advance the development of international IP rules that can adapt to the robust growth of AI technologies, with more international cooperation and exchanges in the field, he added.

China has seen remarkable development in AI innovation in recent years, with groundbreaking products such as those developed by DeepSeek capturing global attention and injecting new impetus into industrial transformation.

Shen lauded the breakthroughs, especially products developed by startups, emphasizing that the trend demonstrates the continuous advancement of high-level technological innovation in the country.

Data from the administration shows that last year, China granted more than 1.04 million invention patents, a year-on-year increase of 13.5 percent, while the registration of trademarks reached 4.78 million, up 9.1 percent compared with the previous year.

According to the Global Innovation Index Report 2024, released in September by the World Intellectual Property Organization, China is home to 26 of the world's top 100 science and technology clusters, the highest for any country in the past two years.

"China has become the largest holder of AI-related patents globally. The numbers indicate that the dynamism of China's creation is accelerating, with the innovation momentum in key emerging fields being vigorously released," Shen said.

As AI technologies continuously develop and their applications become more diverse, the number of relevant patent applicants is also growing rapidly, presenting new challenges for IP protection.

"AI involves multiple IP aspects, including patents, trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets, so it is vital for innovators to think more about which technologies need protection, what measures need to be taken, and how to leverage IP to enhance their competitiveness," he said.

Given the current focus on patent-related IP protection in the AI field, Shen said the administration has taken some action. It has clarified that inventions involving AI can be patented through revisions to the patent examination guidelines of 2019. Last year, the administration issued another guideline targeted at tackling AI-related invention patent applications.

IP protection centers

While improving the legal framework, the administration has established 77 national IP protection centers to provide businesses with comprehensive IP services. Among these, 62 centers have offered preexamination services for AI-related patents to more than 21,000 registered enterprises and institutions.

Last year, these centers received 46,000 pre-examination requests for AI patents, with 31,000 patents granted through quick review channels, "which significantly supported the high-quality development of the AI industry", according to Shen.

Considering that AI technologies involve many other fields, such as new-generation information technology, new materials and high-end equipment manufacturing, Shen underlined that IP protection must also meet the diverse needs of different fields.

"We've stepped up efforts to boost collaborative IP protection systems with other authorities," he said, noting that courts, procuratorates, public security bureaus and customs have been invited to set up offices in 33 of the national IP protection centers.

"This move is conducive to improving the timeliness, coordination and effectiveness of administrative and judicial IP protection in emerging fields like AI," he added.

Shen called for local governments and industrial associations to join the IP protection team in order to better embrace fast-developing AI-related technologies and effectively address new challenges.(China Daily)