UKIPO

SEARCH (patent examiner search tool)

The UKIPO’s internal patent search platform is branded SEARCH. SEARCH is described by the UKIPO as using “AI-driven concepts” to produce results ranked by similarity and for the first time by relevance. The tool is intended to help examiners analyse and refine searches as they progress.

Conceptually this tool acts to support an examiner in more efficiently identifying prior art but leaves the detailed critical analysis of the documents with the examiner. As such it should help free up patent examiners to spend more time on their substantive analysis.

AI allocation tool (internal case allocation/routing to examiners)

The UKIPO has also disclosed that it is now using a “new AI allocation tool” within its digital services, which automatically allocates patent applications to examiners with the appropriate technical expertise. The UKIPO states that the tool can instantly complete a task that previously took 14 days.

Automated case allocation is a relatively low-risk application of AI within the UKIPO. The tool acts to reduce the behind the scenes administrative burden of handling patent applications while simultaneously speeding up processing. As with SEARCH, substantive analysis of applications remains with examiner.

Check if you could register your trade mark tool (public-facing AI tool, trade marks)

On the trade marks side, the UKIPO offers a public-facing pre-application tool designed to help applicants identify a number of preliminary issues and check for potentially conflicting marks. The tool uses AI across computer linguistics and computer vision, including embedding-based similarity searching of both text and image marks.

While this tool is helpful as an early-stage screening mechanism for identifying obvious conflicts or descriptive issues, at present its analysis remains very limited and its output should not be mistaken for clearance advice.

EPO

ANSERA (patent examiner search tool)

The EPO describes ANSERA as its highly sophisticated search tool, enabling rapid search and analysis of very large document sets, using concept-based search strategies directed by the examiner.

As with SEARCH at the UKIPO, ANSERA acts to support an examiner in more efficiently identifying prior art but leaves the detailed critical analysis of the documents with the examiner.

Legal interactive platform (LIP) (generative-AI legal search in MyEPO)

The EPO recently announced the launch of the legal interactive platform (LIP) within MyEPO services, describing it as the first generative AI-based tool added to that suite. The EPO explains that users can query in conversational language and receive structured responses with summaries and links, drawing from selectable sources such as the EPC, EPC Guidelines, PCT-EPO Guidelines, and Boards of Appeal materials.

While such a tool has a lot of potential, in our testing we unfortunately identified numerous errors and hallucinations in its output. As such, this tool is better thought of as a navigational aid at present, providing helpful suggestions of possible legal references rather than as an authoritative interpreter of law.

AI-assisted minute writing for oral proceedings

The EPO has also recently announced a pilot for drawing up minutes of oral proceedings held by videoconference with the assistance of AI. The EPO’s Official Journal notice is explicit that ultimate responsibility for the accuracy of the minutes remains with the competent division, and that recordings and transcriptions used to support minute drafting must be deleted once the minutes are issued.

This tool helps reduce the administrative burden on the division when drawing up minutes while leaving final responsibility firmly with the division. We anticipate this tool should reduce delays in the production of minutes while improving accuracy.

CPC text categoriser (AI-powered CPC symbol prediction)

The EPO provides an AI-powered classification aid that suggests appropriate cooperative patent classification (CPC) coding for a provided technical description. CPC coding is useful for performing patent searches and identifying potentially relevant patents and patent applications.

While potentially a helpful tool, great care must be taken not to input any confidential/unpublished subject matter into this tool as the EPO explicitly sets out that information entered into the tool is not kept confidential by the EPO and therefore risks being treated as a public disclosure.

Patent Translate (machine translation for patent documents)

The EPO’s Patent Translate is a machine translation service developed with Google and intended specifically for use with patent documents. The tool provides translations of patent documents in 32 languages. EPO examiners regularly rely on these translations during prosecution.

Since its introduction in 2012 Patent Translate has become an indispensable tool, with its translations often being sufficient during prosecution to allow for the examiner and applicant to analyse a document’s technical content.

USPTO

SimSearch (patent examiner search tool)

SimSearch forms part of the USPTO’s examiner-search environment, patents end-to-end (PE2E) Search. The tool uses trained AI models to output a list of domestic and foreign patent documents similar to the application being searched, with the ability to refine the search using CPC classifications and examiner-selected passages from the application.

Similarly to the approach being taken at the UKIPO and EPO, SimSearch acts as an assistive tool for the examiner in efficiently identifying prior art but leaves the detailed critical analysis of the documents with the examiner.

ASAP! (artificial intelligence search automated pilot program)

Very recently, in October 2025, the USPTO launched a pilot called ASAP! The pilot conducts an automated search of a patent application prior to examination and issues an automated search results notice (ASRN). The USPTO notes that applicants are not required to respond to an ASRN, but may choose to act (for example, by filing a preliminary amendment, deferring examination, or abandoning the application) in light of the cited art.

ASAP! is potentially the most ambitious of all the tools listed in this article. While in no sense a substitute for a full review by an examiner, if ASAP! proves during the pilot to work as promised it could perform a similar function the UKIPO’s “check if you could register your trade mark” tool in helping to identify obvious issues at an early stage.

Conclusion

Across all three offices, the pattern is consistent: AI is being used to identify potentially relevant material faster (similarity/relevance ranking), make classification more accessible (CPC suggestions), and reduce language friction (machine translation). However, at least for the time being, the offices continue to anchor responsibility with the human examiner and on the patentee side, with the applicant or their representative. This is consistent with our approach to any potential use of AI, which will ensure that our attorneys retain absolute responsibility for the output of any tools.

If you have any questions on this subject, or would like assistance with protecting your invention, please contact your usual D Young & Co representative.