An October 2026 paper tested AI-assisted patent drafting and later unaided redlining.

The big change

  • What changed: Assisted drafting improved, while later redlining gains centered on seniors.
  • Why it matters: Assisted output alone cannot establish retained judgment.
  • What to watch: Longer studies with repeated unaided assessments could clarify the junior result.

The separate test of judgment

Of 133 randomized lawyers, 91 completed redlining; blinded patent attorneys scored it.

Against controls, AI-group draft scores were 0.34 and 0.38 standard deviations higher at days 10 and 90. Later redlining scores were 0.32 SD higher overall, 0.45 for seniors and −0.03 for juniors (imprecise).

Limits on the learning claim

Baseline skill went unmeasured; 32% attrition and unverified compliance with the no-AI rule limit inference. Google funded and ran the trial with its patent contractors.

Junior skill loss and career effects remain unproven. The paper is unreviewed.