In this episode, John Paul Keeler and Carl Osterlof speak with Alessandro Cossu, an Italian patent attorney and former EPO examiner who is optimistic about AI, as long as humans stay firmly in control. With 15 years at the EPO and now extensive experience in oppositions, he offers a rare view of how AI is beginning to shape litigation.

Alessandro believes AI can be a “game changer,” but only for litigators who do their homework, those who understand how the models work, and have the expertise to judge the output. He also connects AI to a broader concern: patent quality. In his opposition work, he often finds critical prior-art documents only after grant, documents “you would normally expect examiners to have found.” For him, AI’s real promise is improving search and examination upstream, reducing the number of weak patents that later fall in litigation.

About Alessandro Cossu

Alessandro Cossu is a Patent Attorney and Partner at BUGNION, specializing in patent litigation and oppositions. Before moving into private practice, he spent 15 years as a patent examiner at the EPO, where he also trained new and experienced examiners. A microwave engineer by training, his day-to-day work spans prior-art searching, drafting, and high-stakes legal strategy, giving him a rare dual perspective on both sides of the patent system.