── Intellectual Property ──

Six filings.
One standard.

Verdict has filed six patent applications at the USPTO — one non-provisional and five provisionals. The posture is defensive, not offensive. The Sealed Evidence Record specification is Apache 2.0 forever. Verdict publishes a RAND-Z licensing commitment for conformant SER implementations, scoped to the SER specification, version-pinned to the published conformance test, and subject to defensive-termination terms. The patents exist to keep the standard from being forked, captured, or re-proprietarized — not to extract rent from adopters.

◈ RAND-Z licensed · Apache 2.0 spec · Patents do not block conformant SER adoption

Prosecution status, stated plainly: no Verdict application has been examined, allowed, or granted. Filed is not granted. Provisionals are never examined and confer no enforceable rights on their own; each must be converted to a non-provisional within twelve months of its filing date or it lapses. Nothing on this page should be read as a claim of an issued patent.

VERDICT-001-NP

AI Liability Evidence Capture & Court-Ready Evidence Generation

◈ Non-Provisional · USPTO 19/657,024
Filed April 24, 2026

Abstract

A system and method for capturing cryptographically sealed evidence records of AI agent actions that render into multiple regulatory formats — SOC 2 dossiers, EU AI Act Article 12 logs, FRE 902(13)/(14) certification packets, and insurer underwriting submissions — without rework. One sealed record satisfies simultaneous compliance with auditing, regulatory, evidentiary, and insurance standards.

In plain English

Verdict captures what autonomous AI agents do at runtime and seals it cryptographically so the evidence cannot be modified. The sealed record is smart enough to render into whatever format regulators, courts, insurers, and auditors need — without rework.

Core invention pillars

  • Closed taxonomy of canonical AI agent event types
  • Content-addressed policy bundle versioning via SHA-256
  • RFC 6962 Merkle trees + Sigstore Rekor anchoring + Ed25519 signing
  • Hash-preserving redaction (GDPR Article 17 compliance without breaking proof)
  • Evidentiary Completeness Score (ECS) → FRE 902(13)/(14) certification map
VERDICT-002-PROV· CODENAME GUARDIAN

Autonomous Agent Intent Verification and Policy Gatekeeping System

◈ Provisional · USPTO 64/059,263
Filed May 6, 2026

Abstract

Pre-execution verification of autonomous agent intent against a hierarchical policy tree, enforcing graduated gatekeeping — allow, require human review, escalate, deny — at the atomic action level, with cryptographic evidence sealing of every policy evaluation. Non-provisional conversion deadline May 6, 2027.

In plain English

Before an agent acts, its stated intent is decomposed into atomic actions and checked against a policy tree. The check itself is sealed, so the record shows not only what the agent did but what it was permitted to do and who decided that.

Core invention pillars

  • Constrained decomposition of agent intent into schema-bounded atomic action primitives
  • Hierarchical DAG policy tree evaluated pre-execution, not post-hoc
  • Four-state graduated gatekeeping at the atomic-action level
  • Every policy evaluation sealed as evidence, including the allows
VERDICT-003-PROV· CODENAME CIRCUIT

Real-Time Intelligent Circuit Breaker for Distributed AI Agent Pipeline Fault Isolation and Graceful Degradation

◈ Provisional · USPTO 64/059,307
Filed May 7, 2026

Abstract

Detecting behavioral drift in autonomous agents at runtime using distance analysis over output embeddings, triggering graduated intervention — alert, fallback, credential revocation, halt — with state preservation across degradation and cryptographic sealing of every intervention. Non-provisional conversion deadline May 7, 2027.

In plain English

When an agent starts behaving unlike itself, something has to catch it in flight — and prove afterwards that it caught it. This is the breaker: it degrades the agent in stages instead of killing it, preserves the work in progress, and seals what it did.

Core invention pillars

  • Drift detection via KL / Wasserstein distance over output embeddings
  • Four-tier graduated intervention ladder rather than a binary kill switch
  • State preservation and resumption during degradation
  • Multi-agent cascade isolation with sub-100ms policy-matrix propagation
VERDICT-004-PROV· CODENAME AUTHORITY

Authority-Bound Autonomous Agent Execution Using Sealed Human Authority Records, Provably Narrowing Delegation, and Single-Use Execution Credentials

◈ Provisional · USPTO 64/135,051
Filed August 17, 2026

Abstract

A system in which a human authorization is sealed into a tamper-evident authority record, sub-agent delegation is constrained so that authority can only narrow and never broaden along a chain, and the credential that actually executes the action is derived from the commitment of the sealed authorization itself — single-use, and mintable by no issuer. Non-provisional conversion deadline August 17, 2027.

In plain English

Every other layer records what an agent did. This filing covers binding who stood behind it. The permission is sealed before the action, it can only get smaller as it is handed down, and the key that runs the action is derived from the sealed permission — so there is no authorization server holding a secret that could mint it again.

Core invention pillars

  • Sealed Human Authority Record binding a named human decision to a scoped grant
  • Pre-execution evidence gate — no authority record, no execution
  • Provably narrowing delegation: authority can only contract along a sub-agent chain
  • Single-use execution credential derived from the sealed authorization commitment
  • Issuer-negative property: no authorization server or credential issuer holds a secret sufficient to mint a credential valid for the delegated action
  • Revocation that produces evidence rather than silence
VERDICT-005-PROV· CODENAME ABSENCE

System and Method for Certifying the Non-Occurrence of Prohibited Autonomous-Agent Actions Against a Public Transparency-Log Population Defined in Advance by an Authority Record

◈ Provisional · USPTO 64/172,610
Filed October 9, 2026

Abstract

A certificate that no autonomous-agent action of a prohibited class occurred, checked against a population of public transparency-log entries that an authority record defined in advance. Non-provisional conversion deadline October 12, 2027.

In plain English

Most evidence proves that something happened. This filing covers proving that something did not: that no action of a forbidden kind ran, measured against a set of log entries fixed before the question was asked.

Core invention pillars

  • Certificate of non-occurrence for a prohibited class of agent action
  • Checked against a population of entries on a public transparency log
  • Population defined in advance by a sealed authority record
VERDICT-006-PROV· CODENAME DRAW

System and Method for Selecting Autonomous-Agent Step Records for Retention by a Public Beacon Draw Against Retention Probabilities Committed in an Anchored Record Before the Draw

◈ Provisional · USPTO 64/174,979
Filed October 13, 2026

Abstract

Selecting which autonomous-agent step records are retained by a public beacon draw, against retention probabilities committed in an anchored record before the draw. Non-provisional conversion deadline October 13, 2027.

In plain English

Keeping every agent step forever is expensive, and letting the operator choose what to keep invites a fight about what was left out. This filing covers a draw: the odds for each step are committed and anchored first, then a public beacon decides what is kept.

Core invention pillars

  • Retention probabilities committed in an anchored record before the draw
  • Selection by a public beacon draw
  • Step records retained according to the draw

The patents protect the standard.

Every conformant SER implementation receives a RAND-Z licensing commitment scoped to the published SER conformance test, subject to defensive-termination terms. Use the spec. Build on it. Fork the text under Apache 2.0. Everything required to produce, read, verify or independently reimplement a conformant Sealed Evidence Record is granted, royalty-free and irrevocably, to every conformant implementation, across all Verdict patent claims present and future. Verdict reserves only claims directed solely to the issuance side: generating authority records and minting execution credentials. Full terms at verdict.systems/ip-policy.

Request a sealed record →