Glossary
The right protecting original works such as text, images, and code, and the central battleground in disputes over AI training data and generated output.
Intellectual Property and AI
from AI & Law
AI raises fundamental questions about intellectual property. Can an AI system be an inventor for patent purposes? The UK Supreme Court said no in Thaler v Comptroller-General (2023), holding that only natural persons can be inventors under the Patents Act 1977. Who owns the copyright in AI-generated works? Under current UK law, copyright in computer-generated works belongs to the person who made the arrangements necessary for the work's creation — but this provision was drafted long before generative AI and its application is deeply uncertain. Meanwhile, the use of copyrighted material as training data for AI models is the subject of intense debate, proposed legislation, and litigation on both sides of the Atlantic.
Large Language Model (LLM)
An AI system trained on vast text datasets to generate, summarise, and analyse human language — the technology behind tools like ChatGPT and legal AI assistants.
EU AI Act
The European Union's comprehensive regulation classifying AI systems by risk level and imposing corresponding obligations on developers and deployers.
Algorithmic Bias
Systematic errors in AI decision-making that produce unfair outcomes for particular groups, often reflecting biases present in training data.
Explainability
The degree to which the internal logic of an AI model can be understood and communicated to humans — a key requirement for high-risk AI under many regulatory frameworks.
Training Data
The dataset used to teach an AI model to recognise patterns and generate outputs — its quality and composition directly determine the model's capabilities and biases.
Model Risk
The risk of adverse consequences arising from decisions based on AI or statistical models that are incorrect, misused, or inadequately understood.
AI Governance
The internal policies, processes, and controls an organisation puts in place to manage the development, procurement, and use of AI systems responsibly.
Deepfake
Synthetic media — typically video or audio — generated by AI to convincingly depict events that did not occur, raising concerns in fraud, evidence, and defamation.