The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) has revolutionized creativity, invention, and knowledge production, challenging traditional paradigms of intellectual property rights (IPR) and ownership. As AI systems increasingly generate original artistic, literary, and technical works autonomously, existing legal frameworks rooted in human authorship and inventorship struggle to maintain relevance. This paper analyzes how intellectual property regimes are adapting to AI-created works and automated innovation within the global knowledge economy. From a broad perspective, it examines the evolving intersection between AI, creativity, and legal accountability, exploring how international conventions such as the Berne Convention, TRIPS Agreement, and WIPO initiatives are addressing non-human authorship and cross-border innovation governance. The study then narrows its focus to assess the emerging debates surrounding copyright, patentability, and moral rights in AI-generated outputs. It investigates whether AI systems should be recognized as inventors or merely as tools under human supervision, and how such recognition or lack thereof impacts innovation incentives, liability, and commercialization [e.g., in automated design and pharmaceutical discovery]. Additionally, it evaluates national legal experiments, including the European Union’s AI Act, the U.S. Copyright Office’s guidelines on machine-created works, and China’s evolving patent approach to AI-assisted inventions. The paper highlights persistent conflicts over originality, ownership, and accountability, emphasizing the need for coherent policies that balance technological advancement with equitable rights distribution. Ultimately, the research proposes a dynamic, hybrid IPR model that recognizes human–machine collaboration as a continuum rather than a dichotomy, fostering an inclusive and innovation-driven global knowledge ecosystem.