Google Files AI Patents
http://www.i-programmer.info/news/105-artificial-intelligence/8765-google-files-ai-patents.html
As the anonymous poster on Redit says: "I am afraid that Google
has just started an arms race, which could do significant damage
to academic research in machine learning. Now it's likely that
other companies using machine learning will rush to patent every
research idea that was developed in part by their employees. We
have all been in a prisoner's dilemma situation, and Google just
defected. Now researchers will guard their ideas much more
combatively, given that it's now fair game to patent these ideas,
and big money is at stake."
You might make the charitable assumption that Google has just
patented the ideas so that it can protect them - i.e. to stop
other more evil companies from patenting them and extracting fees
from open source implementations of machine learning libraries.
For a precedent for this see Google Frees Up More Patents. Even
if this is the case, open source libraries are often purged of
non-free routines and this makes life significantly harder for
researchers. Google needs to clarify the position but even if it
does there is no way to make sure it doesn't exercise its patent
rights are a later date. The source of the problem is the whole
US patent system with its "first to file is the inventor" policy.
- - -
It might well be a good idea for Google to clarify its stance regarding
these patent applications.
--Lauren--
Lauren Weinstein ([email protected]): http://www.vortex.com/lauren
Founder:
- Network Neutrality Squad: http://www.nnsquad.org
- PRIVACY Forum: http://www.vortex.com/privacy-info
Co-Founder: People For Internet Responsibility: http://www.pfir.org/pfir-info
Member: ACM Committee on Computers and Public Policy
Lauren's Blog: http://lauren.vortex.com
Google+: http://google.com/+LaurenWeinstein
Twitter: http://twitter.com/laurenweinstein
Tel: +1 (818) 225-2800 / Skype: vortex.com
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