Data, open source, software and AI

First published by Process Engineering - February 2024 The world's population stands above 8 billion in 2024 and is still growing. That growth may be slowing down but nonetheless there may be another...

Much has been written about the development of artificial intelligence (AI) and its potential to reshape everyday life.This potential is already being realised in healthcare, with health...

On April 30, 2025, the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) released a draft amendment of the Patent Examination Guidelines (for public comment), proposing further revisions to...

It is fair to say that no technology in recent times has created so much excitement and controversy as generative AI, and in particular Large Language Models (LLMs). Generative AI companies and their backers have their sights on generating billions, if not trillions of dollars, directly or indirectly from their models. Models which, in the vast majority of cases, are trained on original works without permission from, or payment to, their authors. The works used for training are primarily obtained by scraping the open web, a uniquely vast repository of publicly accessible knowledge and information, constantly updated to reflect the latest developments in human knowledge and culture.

On 2 July 2025, the Enlarged Board of Appeal of the European Patent Office (EPO) issued its landmark decision in case G 1/23 (Solar Cell Sealing Materials and Solar Cell Module), a ruling that has...