You have probably heard of Bored Ape Yacht Club, a collection of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) created by Yuga Labs. These NFTs are owned by A-list celebrities and exploded in popularity in 2021. Currently, Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs can sell for millions of dollars and are arguably one of the…
In today’s News of Note, we examine how quantum computers are aiding scientific research and forcing governments to upgrade their cybersecurity defense programs, new AI tools and the continued debate on the ethics of their use, the latest cryptocurrency scams, and much more. Materials that promise to make quantum computers…
Yesterday, the U.S. Copyright Office (USCO) and U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) announced a joint study on IP issues related to NFTs. This follows a Congressional request by senators Leahy and Tillis that the Offices explore these issues. Today, the Offices will publish a Notice of Inquiry (unpublished version…
In today’s News of Note, anxieties continue to grow over AI-generated art, effective cybersecurity for the high-tech era, and the impact of facial recognition and gunshot detection technology on human rights. An AI-generated homage to South Korean illustrator Kim Jung Gi sparks outrage among his fans and the anime community…
An administrative law judge in the New York State Division of Tax Appeals rejected the state’s position that a taxpayer providing a web-based service which allowed clients to identify effective and ineffective messaging through information, analysis and reports was selling taxable software. Following the rationale applied in a series of…
In today’s News of Note, AI’s increased presence in traditional human roles stirs debate over the future of artists and actors, CISA advises organizations to develop cybersecurity plans for quantum computers, Atari moves into The Sandbox metaverse, and more. The new CHIPS and Science Act gives quantum computing a boost.…
Ethereum, the second largest blockchain-based platform by market cap, is tentatively scheduled to convert its consensus mechanism from proof-of-work (PoW), which incentivizes miners to solve mathematical puzzles to update the blockchain, to proof-of-stake (PoS), which makes decisions about updates through a vote among holders that have “staked” cryptocurrency that is…
Though we recently touched on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruling that only natural beings, which do not include artificial intelligence, can be an inventor under the U.S. Patents Act, the decision merits additional discussion. Defining artificial intelligence (AI) can be a challenging task due to…
AI technology dominates the news cycle with news of DeepMind’s groundbreaking discovery of almost all structures of known proteins, an ethical dilemma prompted by a chess-playing robot that broke its young opponent’s finger, the artistic possibilities that DALL-E’s text-to-picture art tool may deliver, and more. The DOJ announces the extradition…
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has agreed with the U.S. Patent Trademark Office (PTO) in holding that artificial intelligence (AI) cannot be considered an “inventor” for purposes of obtaining patents. Computer scientist Stephen Thaler argued that his AI system “DABUS”1 (which he describes as a collection…