Artificial Intelligence and Intellectual Property Rights: A Critical Analysis of Authorship, Inventorship, and Liability in Indian Law

Abstract

The rapid evolution of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies has fundamentally disrupted the traditional foundations of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) regimes globally, and more particularly within India. Historically, IPR frameworks have operated on an anthropocentric paradigm, premised entirely on the notion that creative expression and technical innovation flow exclusively from human intellect. This paper presents a doctrinal legal evaluation of the challenges that advanced AI models present to Indian intellectual property architecture, focusing specifically on copyright ownership and patent inventorship. By closely scrutinizing Section 2(d) of the Indian Copyright Act, 1957, alongside Section 2(1)(p) of the Patents Act, 1970, the study highlights the critical statutory gap created by autonomous algorithmic outputs. It further reviews the standard of original human authorship established by the Supreme Court of India in Eastern Book Company v. D.B. Modak, analyzing its compatibility with modern AI training methodologies. The paper evaluates the legal ramifications of utilizing copyrighted datasets without permission, examining the viability of the ‘fair dealing’ exception under Section 52(1)(a). Comparing regulatory strategies across the United States, the United Kingdom, and the European Union, the paper proposes a sui generis statutory system designed to balance technological promotion with the protection of human creative labor.