US 8527274

US patent 8527274, titled "System and method for delivering targeted advertisements and tracking advertisement interactions in voice recognition contexts," was issued on September 3, 2013, from an application filed on February 13, 2012. The current assignee is VB Assets LLC, with VoiceBox Technologies Corp listed as the original assignee. The inventors are Tom Freeman and Mike Kennewick.

The patent describes a system and method that uses natural language processing to deliver targeted advertisements and track their interactions within voice recognition environments. When a voice-enabled device receives a user utterance, a conversational language processor selects and delivers advertisements targeted to the user. This targeting is based on cognitive models related to the user, other users with similar characteristics, or the environment in which the utterance was made. The system also tracks subsequent interactions with these advertisements to refine the cognitive models, improving future ad targeting.

Here is a plain-language overview of the independent claims:

• Independent Claim 1 (Method): This claim describes a method involving several steps:

  1. Receiving a natural language voice input from a device.
  2. Processing that voice input to identify user requests.
  3. Determining if any of these identified requests are unclear or incomplete.
  4. Selecting advertisements relevant to the voice input.
  5. Presenting these selected advertisements to the user's device.
  6. Monitoring how the user interacts with the advertisements.
  7. Using that interaction to help clarify or complete the previously unclear or incomplete request.

• Independent Claim 13 (System): This claim describes a system, comprising one or more processors, configured to perform the same set of functions as outlined in Claim 1:

  1. Receive a natural language utterance from a voice-enabled device.
  2. Process the utterance to identify requests.
  3. Determine if a request is incomplete or ambiguous.
  4. Select advertisements related to the utterance.
  5. Output the selected advertisements to the device.
  6. Monitor user interaction with the advertisements.
  7. Interpret the incomplete or ambiguous request based on that interaction.

As of April 26, 2026, a search of CAFC 2026 dockets did not yield any specific litigation directly mentioning US patent 8527274. The search results indicated various patent litigation activities in federal courts and the CAFC during 2026, but no specific matches for this patent number were found.