AI: Is Patenting Really The Right Move? - Factor IV

This article forms one part of a broader decision framework for evaluating whether patent or trade secret protection is appropriate for AI innovation.

The framework is designed to help decision-makers (e.g., innovators, in house, CTOs) align patent and IP strategy with underlying business realities and moving beyond purely "legal" considerations.

How an AI system is commercialized and deployed affects whether patent protection is appropriate. In many cases, the degree of control retained by the provider over the deployed system acts as a counterweight to other considerations that might otherwise favor trade secret protection.

Where the deployment model is customer-controlled, such as when the innovation is licensed for use to the customer, sold as a stand-alone product or deployed within a customer's own IT environment, patent protection can play an important role. These delivery models necessarily expose the technology to customers or integration partners,