Protecting Human Creativity in an AI Driven World

In a world where someone’s idea can be copied and shared in seconds, Dr. Kary Oberbrunner has developed a patented solution to help creators document when their original work was submitted.  

Oberbrunner, Berry Chair and Assistant Professor of Entrepreneurship in the Robert W. Plaster School of Business at Cedarville University, founded Instant IP in 2021. The platform gives authors, business leaders and students a way to document their original work. It uses blockchain technology to create an immutable timestamped record, which can be used to prove ownership, origin and provenance — all critical components to intellectual property protection.  

The rapid growth of generative AI since the launch of ChatGPT in 2022 has raised new questions about intellectual property and how creators can protect their work to prevent human and AI theft. While AI tools can help complete tasks efficiently, many authors and creators have expressed concerns about their work being used without permission or compensation.

“AI is now scraping everybody’s ideas,” Oberbrunner said. “As much as I’m for AI, we need to respect human creativity.” Founder’s Motivation and the Beginning of Instant IP

Oberbrunner’s interest in intellectual property protection stems from personal experience. Throughout his career, he has written 15 books and given a TEDx Talk. He has seen his ideas used without permission and his books stolen by AI companies. He is part of the largest class-action copyright lawsuit in US history, which originated when Anthropic stole 500,000 books. 

“Getting your ideas stolen is the same feeling of having your house broken into,” Oberbrunner said. “You’re trying to sleep at night, and you realize, ‘I have a thief in my house.’” 

For Oberbrunner, intellectual property is more than a book, product or invention. It can include an entrepreneur's startup concept, a student’s capstone, a business’s branding and messaging or the processes that make a business distinctive.

“Intellectual property is actually more valuable than physical property,” he said.

Motivated by this belief, Oberbrunner launched Instant IP in 2021 to give creators a quicker way to document their original work. Traditional intellectual property protections, including patents, trademarks and copyrights, may require significant time and financial resources, creating challenges for some creators and small businesses. 

“What if we could protect something in 60 seconds?” Oberbrunner said. “That was the idea.”

How Instant IP Works

Instant IP was created to provide a fast, accessible record for users before they publicly share their work. Its blockchain-based system records when material is submitted, giving users a timestamped record of their work. Instant IP is designed for people who need both speed and affordability. For a creator or entrepreneur preparing to pitch an original idea, that documentation can offer reassurance before sharing the work publicly.

Oberbrunner's purpose in developing Instant IP is to encourage people to use emerging technology responsibly while recognizing the value of human-created work.

About Cedarville University

Cedarville University, an evangelical Christian institution in southwest Ohio, offers undergraduate and graduate residential and online programs across arts, sciences and professional fields. With 7,542 students, it is among Ohio's largest private universities and is ranked among the nation’s top five evangelical universities in the Wall Street Journal’s 2027 Best Colleges in the U.S. Cedarville is also known for its vibrant Christian community, challenging academics and high graduation and retention rates. Learn more at cedarville.edu.