Genetic Information and Market Supremacy: A Study on Digital and Algorithmic Biopiracy in Modern Biotechnology under Patent and Competition Laws

Abstract

Undeniably, machines and humans have begun to co-exist due to the rise of artificial intelligence and machine learning. These technologies have entered the domains of biotechnology, genomics, and biodiversity-based innovative processes, creating numerous opportunities from digitised biological data. The conceptualisation of digital and algorithmic biopiracy, particularly in genomic and computational biotechnology, is the focal point of this paper. This concept can be understood as the appropriation of knowledge associated with biodiversity through technical and AI-driven processes, in which algorithmically generated outputs are protected by patent law without compliance with access and benefit-sharing obligations. This biopiracy operates through patent rights and digital control over biological data, raising concerns not only regarding environmental issues but also within the purview of patentability and competition laws. Algorithms with technical effect can be protected under the patent regime, and granting patents over AI-derived biological innovations without scrutinising the data can potentially lead to monopolisation. Such patent protection can create anti-competitive consequences and ensure a dominant position and disproportionate control over the essential algorithmic inputs in various pillars of modern biotechnology. Algorithmic biopiracy can significantly cause anti-competitive concerns in bio-digital markets by granting exclusive control, affecting market participation. The paper demonstrates the interconnectivity between patent and competition laws in countering digital and algorithmic biopiracy by adopting a doctrinal and comparative approach, and analyses the legal frameworks of patent and competition law with reference to various global perspectives on algorithmic and digital biopiracy in modern biotechnology. The study highlights significant legal lacunae in addressing this biopiracy within the ambit of anti-competitive practices and economic concerns, and questions the adequacy of existing patent law and competition law frameworks in effectively addressing the issues in ensuring dynamic market competition and fair access to biological knowledge.