Ben Maling

Managing Associate, UK and European Patent Attorney
London

Ben Maling

Ben specialises in protecting and leveraging IP in software and data, with a particular focus on AI. He is regularly sought out by colleagues and clients for his expertise in this area, and has previously run weekly training sessions on deep learning for patent attorneys and solicitors at EIP.

Ben is a strong advocate for the value of human engagement, and enjoys nothing more than getting to know his clients and their business needs. He understands the conflict felt by decision makers wishing to protect their revenue streams and investment, whilst also promoting collaboration to accelerate development, raise their company's profile, and attract top talent. He therefore believes in a holistic approach to IP strategy: for software companies, patents are only part of the story, and need to be deployed in combination with a proper grip on trade secrets, copyright and open source strategy.

Clients stick with Ben for his ability to engage on a deep technical level, and to deliver advice with a relatable, personable approach.

Published articles

  • January 2024
    Solicitors Journal, Open and shut: IP tactics in the race for AI supremacy (link)
  • December 2023
    EIP Updates, End of the line: DABUS reaches its final stop in the UK (link)
  • November 2023
    EIP Updates, It’s been emotional: the High Court says goodbye to excluding AI inventions as computer programs (link)
  • September 2023
    Automotive World, Is automotive's shift to open source software inevitable? (link)
  • June 2023
    TechRound, TechRound’s AI Series: How Is AI Affecting Law? (link)
  • April 2023
    EIP Updates, Tulip Mania - Can an individual or group be said to have de-facto control over a cryptocurrency network? (link)
  • April 2023
    EIP Updates, The Deep Non-Thinker (link)
  • 24 October 2022
    IAM, UK IPO case studies offer some clarity on AI invention patentability (link)
  • 26 September 2022
    EIP Update, UKIPO Case Studies Open the Black Box on Examining Patent Applications Relating to AI Inventions (link)
  • 1 July 2022
    EIP Update, Artificial Intelligence and Intellectual Property – the Government’s Plans to amend UK law – or not! (link)
  • March 2021
    EIP Update, Reality check for patenting computer-implemented simulations at the EPO (link)
  • 20 June 2017
    SIAM (Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics) Journal on Applied Mathematics, Radiation from structured-ring resonators
  • 6 December 2016
    IMA (Institute of Mathematics and its Applications) Journal of Applied Mathematics, Asymptotic analysis of a Bragg fibre: a multiple scales approach
  • 10 November 2016
    Wave Motion, Dynamic homogenisation of Maxwell’s equations with applications to photonic crystals and localised waveforms on metasurfaces
  • 13 July 2016
    Proceedings of the Royal Society A, Whispering Bloch modes

Education and qualifications

  • UK Patent Attorney, 2021
  • European Patent Attorney, 2021
  • 2024
    Certificate in Intellectual Property Litigation
  • 2017 — 2018
    Postgraduate Certificate in Intellectual Property Law , Queen Mary University of London
  • 2013 — 2016
    PhD Applied Mathematics, Imperial College London
  • 2012 — 2013
    MSc Applied Mathematics , Imperial College London
  • 2005 — 2008
    BA Physics , University of Oxford

Career history

  • 2023 — present
    Managing Associate, EIP
  • 2021 — 2023
    Senior Associate, EIP
  • 2016 — 2021
    Associate, EIP
  • 2008 — 2012
    Physics & Maths Teacher / Head of Physics & Maths, Westminster Tutors, London
  • 2009 — 2011
    Physics & Maths Tutor, Graveney School, London

Awards and recognition

  • Legal 500, 2024 (link)

Speaking engagements

  • 6 December 2023
    CIPA Webinar , Patenting CIIs: Challenges Faced and Pitfalls to Avoid (co-presented)
  • 12 October 2023
    Codiphy, Open source and AI panel (introduced and chaired)
  • May 2023
    Codiphy Launch, The Promise and Peril of Generative AI
  • March 2023
    EIP Sweden Launch, The emergence of generative AI
  • 27 July 2016
    Meta ’16 conference, Malaga, Whispering Bloch modes
  • 23 June 2016
    Metamaterials, Beyond Photonics conference, Edinburgh, Whispering Bloch modes
  • 15 August 2015
    Meta ’15 conference, New York, Homogenisation for short waves in metamaterials and photonic crystals

Specialisms

Digital

  • AI
  • Applied maths & cryptography
  • Computer hardware
  • Digital health
  • Gaming and graphics
  • Image and signal processing
  • Medical imaging
  • Software
  • Telecommunications

HealthTech

  • Digital health
  • Medical imaging
  • Personalised healthcare