At a time when many industries fear automation will decimate entry-level positions, OpenAI’s top intellectual property lawyer has offered a counter-vision: use artificial intelligence to mentor new hires, not eliminate them.
Speaking at the Licensing Executives Society (LES) Annual Meeting on October 19, 2026, in San Diego, Gideon Myles, Associate General Counsel – Patents and Trademarks at OpenAI, outlined how the company is fundamentally rethinking the role of junior legal staff. Instead of having automation simply take over routine tasks and reduce headcount, OpenAI’s legal team strips away those repetitive duties from new graduates’ workloads. The fresh hires are then paired with AI agents and teamed with experienced attorneys, who guide them in spotting legal issues and building a solid foundation in legal practice.
“I don’t think AI is going to automate us out of jobs, but it allows us to be more efficient,” Myles said during a conversation with Sam Wiley, LES Annual Meeting Co-Chair and LES Board member. “There’s still a place for humans to think and be creative.”
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Myles also detailed how OpenAI applies its own technology to manage the company’s intellectual property portfolio. The examples he provided were concrete:
- Portfolio-scale patent analysis. AI runs analyses across large patent portfolios, and subject-matter experts then validate the results. Myles compared the process to “having multiple team members, all working at the same time.”
- Automated record checks. A paralegal uses an AI agent to check all of OpenAI’s records on the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office site every week. The team also shares a customizable portfolio dashboard.
- Trademark clearance and communications. AI supports trademark clearance searches and helps manage email and Slack communications.
Beyond the patent and trademark work, Myles highlighted OpenAI’s commercial analyst program, which brings in recent college graduates to learn commercial law. Some participants later become contract managers, while others go on to law school.
Myles urged organizations adopting AI to remain vigilant about data security. That means knowing where information is stored, who can access it, and how potential entry points are protected.
About the Licensing Executives Society (USA and Canada), Inc.
LES is a leading association for intellectual property, technology, and business development professionals. The group brings IP and licensing communities together to network, collaborate, and discuss some of the most critical issues facing the industry. The LES community drives strategy, transactions, and deals involving intellectual property, business, and law, to fuel the evolving innovation economy.
For more information, visit: https://www.lesusacanada.org/
Katie McGowan
LES USA & Canada
communications@les.org
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Why it matters: OpenAI’s approach suggests a potential blueprint for other companies grappling with AI’s impact on the workforce. If adopted widely, this model could preserve the crucial apprenticeship phase of professional careers while still capturing efficiency gains—a compromise that may prove essential as AI capabilities continue to expand.
