How Can We Patent an AI Tool We’re Building?

Dear Will & AiME,

We’re building an AI tool that changes how we process customer claims. Can we patent the method or system?

— Insurance Executive in Hartford

Short answer💡

AI tools and business methods can be patented if they provide a novel, non-obvious, and technically specific improvement. Success depends on clearly defining how the system works, not just what it does, and combining patents with trade secret and contractual protections.

Dear Insurance Executive in Hartford,

This is exactly the kind of innovation that gets people talking—your team builds a smarter way to do business, and AI is central to the system. Whether it speeds up claims, prioritizes service, or routes customers more effectively, it’s a competitive edge. So it’s natural to ask: can we lock it down?

In short, yes, business methods that use AI can be protected. But you’ll need to navigate the patent system carefully. Not everything gets through the door, and the rules around AI and abstract ideas are evolving.

What Makes an AI Tool Patentable in the U.S.?

In the U.S., if your AI-powered method solves a specific technical problem or offers a concrete improvement, you have an opportunity to protect that invention with a patent.

The Patent Office and courts have been cautious with software patents, especially if they’re too abstract. However, when a method includes defined steps, technical innovation, and measurable results, it has a significantly better chance.

Here’s what can help:

• Defined process: A step-by-step method that isn’t just a high-level concept, but clearly explains how your AI operates or integrates into the workflow.

• Novelty: Your approach must be new—no prior art that covers the same combination of features.

• Non-obviousness: It can’t be something any expert in your field would come up with easily based on what’s already out there.

• Technical improvement: If your method improves speed, accuracy, scalability, or integration with other systems, call that out clearly. The more technical the benefit, the stronger your case.

Ways to Strengthen Your IP Position

Whether you pursue the patent route or not, your business method is a valuable IP asset. Here’s how to protect it:

• Consider a Provisional Patent Application
  If you’re still refining your method, a provisional application gives you a priority date without committing to a full patent filing right away. It buys you a year to test, improve, and evaluate market fit while holding your spot in line.

• Map Out the Technical Stack
  Don’t just describe what your system does—describe how it does it. Is it using a specific type of model architecture? Is it trained or triggered by certain data inputs? How does it make decisions? These technical layers are what make a business method patentable.

• Combine Patents with Trade Secret Protection

  Some parts of your workflow may be better kept confidential. Training data, tuning methods, internal thresholds, or routing logic may be difficult to detect or reverse-engineer, making them ideal candidates for trade secret protection. You can layer that alongside patent coverage.

• Don’t Forget Employee IP Agreements
  If employees or contractors contributed to the design, make sure your agreements assign rights to the company. Patent inventorship is a legal status, and you want clean ownership from day one.

Patenting AI-enhanced business methods isn’t about checking a box. It’s about capturing the competitive edge you’ve built. If your approach improves how things work, streamlines operations, or creates technical advantages, it may be more than just a smarter workflow. It could be a protected asset.

-Will & AiME

Three Takeaways:

1. AI-powered business methods can be patented if they offer a novel, concrete, and technical improvement.

2. Draft your applications to highlight specific steps, decision logic, and measurable outcomes.

3. Use a mix of patents, trade secrets, and contracts to fully protect the system you’ve built.