SINGAPORE GRANTS AI PATENT TO ALIBABA IN RECORD TIME, LAUNCHES NEW INITIATIVE TO GROW ASEAN’S INDUSTRY 4.0

Singapore, 28 August 2019 – In conjunction with the earlier launch of IPOS International and the  Skills Framework for IP, the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS) today further announced  a series of new initiatives to support ASEAN Industry 4.0 at IP Week @ SG 2019. IPOS will also sign  six Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) and partnership agreements with a wide range of  stakeholders to bridge Singapore to other innovation communities, enabling businesses from  Singapore and anywhere in the world to use the Republic as a gateway to access new markets.

IPOS grants patent to Alibaba Group in a world record of three months

Under IPOS’ Accelerated Initiative for Artificial Intelligence (AI²) (人工智能专利优先计划), the Alibaba  Group Holdings Limited (Alibaba Group) has been granted an artificial intelligence (AI) patent¹ in just  three months, compared to an average of two to four years. The expedited application-to-grant  process under AI² will enable Alibaba Group and other innovators to bring their AI inventions faster to  the global market through Singapore, and strengthen the Republic’s position as an intellectual  property (IP) hub for cutting-edge technologies in today’s digital economy.

Complimenting Singapore’s efforts in supporting innovative enterprises to accelerate their go-tomarket strategy, Mr Benjamin Bai, Vice President and Chief IP Counsel of Ant Financial (an affiliate of  the Alibaba Group), said, “Companies looking to implement AI solutions globally have grown  exponentially. Against this backdrop, the speed at which a patent can be granted is critical. Singapore  plays a pivotal role as it facilitates our entry into markets of our interest rapidly. We applaud the  efficiency and speed of the Singapore’s IP office, and look forward to filing more patent applications in  Singapore under this initiative.”

Advancement in AI technology as a result of digital innovation has driven the exponential growth of AI  patent filings globally. Between 2008 to 2017, over 180,000 AI inventions were published globally.  With AI progressing at breakneck speed and disrupting almost every industry, IPOS’ AI² will enable  innovators to quickly commercialise their AI technologies and drive enterprise growth. 

ASEAN IP offices launches new initiative to expedite Industry 4.0 patent applications and  expand choices for patent applicants

In a collective effort to boost the flow of innovation into the region, Singapore and eight other ASEAN  IP Offices will prioritise patent applications in key emerging technologies such as FinTech,  cybersecurity and robotics. The pilot project of two years will start from 27 August 2019. Businesses  and innovators will enjoy a short turnaround time of six months for the first office action² under the  new ASPEC³ Acceleration for Industry 4.0 Infrastructure and Manufacturing (ASPEC-AIM) initiative.

ASPEC-AIM will bring economic growth opportunities to ASEAN as Industry 4.0 is expected to deliver  between US$1.2 trillion to US$3.7 trillion in gains globally, and US$216 billion to US$627 billion for  ASEAN given its significant manufacturing composition.⁴

The nine participating ASEAN IP Offices have also agreed to broaden the scope of ASPEC to include  Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) reports under a new initiative called the PCT-ASPEC.⁵ It will run for  a pilot of three years starting on 27 August 2019. Patent applicants will now have the option to use  their PCT reports from an ASEAN International Searching Authority (ISA) and International  Preliminary Examining Authority (IPEA)⁶ to accelerate their patent applications in another ASEAN  country.

Singapore connects with global innovation communities  

To further Singapore’s networks with global innovation communities, IPOS and its enterprise and  industry engagement arm, IPOS International, inked several agreements during the two-day  conference. This includes MOUs with:

• UK Intellectual Property Office in support of the SG-UK Partnership for the Future  framework, to establish a broad framework for both offices to explore cooperation in IP  protection, commercialisation and utilisation.

  
  

• Brazil’s National Institute of Industrial Property to promote the facilitation of innovative  enterprises from both countries to protect and commercialise their IA and IP through  Singapore and Brazil, and collaborative arrangements such as a pilot Patent Prosecution  Highway (PPH).⁷
  

  
  

• Qatar Free Zones Authority to support bilateral economic engagements through the  sharing of best practices and knowledge on the management of IA and IP, and  connecting the innovation ecosystems of both countries.

  
  

• IPOS International and IPR Daily to develop cooperation activities such as seminars and  training programmes for Chinese enterprises to promote and increase their knowledge  and capabilities in IP protection, commercialisation and management.

In addition, other agreements signed include:

• Implementation Workplan with the Intellectual Property Office of Viet Nam to deepen  bilateral cooperation in the areas of IP commercialisation and patent work-sharing.

  
  

• Extension of the PPH with China’s National IP Administration to continue the sharing of  search and examination results between both IP offices until 31 August 2021. This will expedite and ease the patent application process for IP rights owners from both  countries.

Mr Daren Tang, Chief Executive of IPOS, said, “This year’s IP Week @ SG 2019 marks a significant  milestone for IPOS in our efforts to catalyse the growth of innovative enterprises, industries and the  economy with intellectual property and intangible assets. We are honoured to be supported by our  partners and stakeholders from the public and private sectors in the local and international innovation  communities in building our collective IP expertise and networks to support our enterprises’ ambitions  to grow. We hope that our new initiatives and partnerships will allow us to bring further value to global  innovation flows, strengthen our position as one of the hubs for these flows, and ultimately help drive  future growth for our economy and the region.”

CE of the UK IP Office, Tim Moss, British High Commissioner to Singapore, H.E. Kara Owen, CE of IPOS, Daren Tang

President of INPI, Dr Cláudio Vilar Furtado,  Ambassador of Brazil to Singapore, H.E. Flávio  Soares Damico, CE of IPOS, Daren Tang

¹  Alibaba’s patented technology is a modified metric that helps to improve the accuracy of object detection in areas such as  image and text recognition.

² A first office action report is a document written by a patent examiner in response to a patent application. The examiner will cite prior art and gives reasons for allowing, approving and/ or rejecting the claims.

³  ASPEC or the ASEAN Patent Examination Cooperation is the regional work-sharing programme that reduces the cost and  waiting time to obtain a patent in an ASEAN country. 

⁴ McKinsey & Company, 2018 Report on Industry 4.0: Reinvigorating ASEAN manufacturing for the future

⁵ They are from Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet  Nam.

⁶ Administered by the World Intellectual Property Organization, international search and international preliminary examination  can only be carried out by appointed International Authorities known as ISA and IPEAs. To date, Singapore and the Philippines  are among the 23 IP Offices around the world that are appointed as ISAs and IPEAs.

⁷  PPH is a programme between IP Offices where examination process of a patent application in one IP Office can be  accelerated by referencing the examination results from another IP Office. Such work-sharing arrangement allows applicants to  obtain corresponding patents faster and more efficiently.

Source：IPOS

Editor：Vapor