Artificial Intelligence

At Stephens Scown, we provide comprehensive legal advice on all aspects of artificial intelligence (AI). Our experienced team is dedicated to helping clients navigate the evolving complex legal landscape of AI, offering tailored solutions for intellectual property protection, regulatory compliance, contract negotiation and more. We also offer specialised AI awareness packages and policies for employers to ensure ethical and compliance use of AI technologies in the workplace – including in accordance with data protection laws.

What is Artificial Intelligence?

Artificial intelligence refers to the simulation of human intelligence in machines that are programmed to perform a variety of functions. These systems can perform tasks that typically require human intelligence, such as visual perception, speech recognition, decision-making and language translation.

A common form of artificial intelligence is “Generative AI” – this is a type of AI model that is trained on a wide set of data to enable it to ‘generate’ an output in response to an input. An “output” is another way of saying the formation of information that is produced by the AI model when given an input. Examples of an output include a piece of writing or an image. An “input” is the instruction or “prompt” given by the individual operating the AI model.

Each business will interact with AI tools differently depending on its industry and digital literacy. We are here to help you as trusted advisors and can apply our knowledge and expertise to provide you with tailored and relevant AI legal support.

AI and Intellectual Property

Large language models are trained on significant datasets to enable the tools to perform tasks efficiently and somewhat accurately. This is where intellectual property comes in. More often than not, given the sheer volume of data used to train the models, the datasets often contain intellectual property – from copyright protected works and designs to patents and trade marks. The law in this area is rapidly evolving with new case law paving the way for the treatment of AI technologies. It is important for a business to be alive to the risks in this space and pivot its strategy accordingly.

It is also important for a technology business to understand how and if it can best protect its AI models – this is often through a combination of different IP rights and contractual terms – it is important to consult specialist legal advice to enable the development of a bespoke IP strategy.

Copyright

AI-generated content raises complex questions about copyright ownership. Traditional copyright laws are based on the concept of human authorship, but with AI, the lines are blurred.

Deepfakes

Deepfakes are AI-generated videos or images that can convincingly depict people saying or doing things they never actually did. While this technology can have legitimate uses if carefully controlled, it also poses significant risks, including the potential for misuse in creating misleading or harmful content.

Our Experience providing Generative AI Legal Advice

At Stephens Scown, our Intellectual Property (IP) team support a wide range of businesses across numerous sectors with use, development and regulation of AI technologies. Our team has been at the forefront of this rapidly evolving field.

Members of the team have delivered numerous talks on the topics and have hosted round-table events to discuss the current regulatory and legal landscape. Such events provide a platform for collaborative learning and the exchange of ideas, helping to shape the future of AI law.

What we can do for Technology Businesses

At Stephens Scown, we understand the unique challenges faced by technology businesses – aided by the fact we understand the technology itself and not just the law. Our team offers tailored legal advice to help you navigate the complexities of AI and emerging technologies, as well as packages dependent on need.

We can assist with:

• Intellectual property protection. Ensuring your innovations are safeguarded through robust IP strategies.
• Legal compliance. Helping you stay compliant with evolving laws
• Contract negotiation. Drafting and negotiating contracts that protect your interests
• AI awareness packages. We offer AI readiness packages designed to help your business understand and comply with data protection obligations and copyright risks.
• Data protection advice. Reviewing the flow and use of data and the legal obligations in respect of the same
• AI policies for staff. Establishing policies for employers to control use and manage the risk amongst your workforce
• Commercial terms of business. To ensure the commercialisation of your technology aligns with your IP strategy and reduces the risk to your business

As the law continues to develop in the artificial intelligence sphere, the needs of businesses will continue to evolve concurrently. It is therefore key that you obtain specialist legal support to ensure you are protected and reduce the risk to your business. Our team is on hand to advise you through this next phase in the technological advancement.

Recommendations:

“The knowledge of the digital team far outweigh other solicitors that I have dealt with in the past.” – Legal 500

“The advisory spectrum at Stephens Scown LLP covers IT contracts and outsourcing agreements as much as innovative topics such as AI and blockchain. Thomas Chartres-Moore is one of the key contacts and combines IT expertise with know-how in data protection and IP alongside also spearheading the firm’s food and drink practice group. Amy Ralston’s experience includes software licenses, SaaS, and influencer marketing.” – Legal 500