Does AI Assistance Enhance or Erode Expertise? Evidence from a Three-Month Field Experiment in Patent Drafting -- by David Autor, Tanya Rodchenko, Josh Martin, Zanna Iscenko, Scott Strand, David Pearl, Melissa Ferere
Intellectual Property LawEconomicsHuman Resources
THE AI ANGLE
improving immediate drafting performance while yielding uneven unassisted skill retentionA three-month randomized controlled trial of 133 patent attorneys revealed that using a custom AI assistant improved drafting quality at 10 and 90 days, with the largest initial performance boosts seen among junior lawyers. However, when evaluated on an unassisted redlining task afterward, durable skill gains were concentrated entirely among senior attorneys, while junior lawyers showed no average gain and suffered bifurcated outcomes. This demonstrates to faculty that foundational expertise may be an essential prerequisite for translating AI-assisted productivity into lasting human capital.
THE TEACHING ANGLE
Instructors can explore the tension between immediate AI-driven productivity gains and long-term professional development, debating whether novice practitioners risk stunting foundational judgment by relying on AI early in their careers.Read the original at nber.org Generate teaching or study materials
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