Merck, a German pharmaceutical company, has got a blockchain patent from the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The firm has built a system that uses blockchain and Artificial Intelligence to verify the authenticity of physical medical objects. As per Merck, the platform uses machine learning to validate the authenticity of the physical objects by linking them to unique identifiers or "fingerprints" such as chemical signatures, DNA and image patterns. The company has also claimed that the tech which is being currently developed in Merck Innovation Center can help in efficiently curbing the issues related to counterfeit of physical products globally.