[Patentpractice] USPTO launches new AI Pilot for pre-examination utility application search

Wed Oct 8 16:45:56 UTC 2025

First impression:
Do we know if this search tool is any good?
If so, in which technologies?
If not, why would I want to pay the cost of preparing a patent application
and filing it as a US a non-provisional to get the search done? Especially
since this new program will require a petition and fee under rule 1.182?
Furthermore, who wants to pay the cost of filing a US non-provisional
patent application and only THEN do a search (and have to petition for the
search to boot)? If the tool exists, why can't they make it available to
everyone BEFORE filing?
If you're in a tech area where maximizing patent term matters (like
pharma), why start the clock for the 20 year patent term, if the
search results might indicate to the applicant that more lab research is
warranted?  Especially since the FR notice says, "The USPTO will not render
a decision on the petition until the application has completed
pre-examination processing", which, with current wait times, means you
could be closer to the end of the priority year than the beginning of it
before you're even accepted into the program. Even if more labwork isn't
warranted, in order to preserve full 20 years in the USA, in parallel to
filing the US non-provisional for the AI search, on the same day I'd need
to file the application as a provisional as well, and then possibly abandon
the non-provisional.
Why not make the search tool available for provisional applications?
Will applications for which the petition is accepted be subject to
restriction before the search is conducted, or will the AI thing not care?
The FR notice doesn't say.
Seems to me that for applicants/inventors from outside the USA, there are
more attractive options available.

Dan

On Wed, Oct 8, 2025 at 5:57 PM U.S. Patent and Trademark Office <
subscriptioncenter at subscriptions.uspto.gov> wrote:

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> Press Release
> USPTO launches new AI Pilot for pre-examination utility application search
>
> ALEXANDRIA, VA—In furtherance of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s
> (USPTO) steadfast commitment to dramatically improve examination quality,
> response time, and efficiency, the agency today announced the launch of its
> Artificial Intelligence Search Automated Pilot (ASAP!) Program. The ASAP!
> Program will test the USPTO’s internal artificial intelligence (AI) tool’s
> efficacy for conducting pre-examination prior art searches.
>
> “To the Senate Judiciary Committee and inventors of all stripes, I
> promised to ‘lean-in’ to AI,” said John A. Squires, Under Secretary of
> Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO. “Our ASAP!
> announcement today is the first of many planned AI pilots designed to help
> examiners and applicants alike ensure their patents are born strong.
> Quality starts at filing—and our enterprising examiners have developed a
> cadre of new tools that re-imagine workflows and attack thorny chokepoints
> that constrain productivity, throughput, and ultimately quality for new
> applicants. ASAP! is intended to foster common ground in the first
> instance. This is us leaning-in. Watch this space.”
>
> The new pilot will provide applicants with an initial communication
> identifying a “top ten list” of potential prior art issues in need of
> attention. By generating an AI-Assisted Search Results Notice (ASRN), ASAP!
> will afford applicants an early opportunity to assess their claims against
> the prior art before substantive examination. Indeed, the pilot will look
> to inform applicants of potential courses of first action responses such
> as:
>
>    1. Filing a preliminary amendment;
>    2. Marshaling evidence for affidavit practice and notice taken by the
>    USPTO;
>    3. Requesting deferral; or
>    4. Filing petitions, including express abandonment, to seek a refund
>    of certain fees if examination is no longer desired.
>
> The USPTO will conduct its automated search using an internal AI system
> that derives contextual information from the classification of the
> application under the Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) system, as
> well as from the specification, claims, and abstract of the application.
>
> The USPTO will utilize the pilot results to assess outcomes for
> pre-examination searches, evaluate the scalability of generating the ASRN,
> and collect data to inform next steps and companion pilots. To participate
> in ASAP!, applicants will be required to file a specific petition
> accompanied by a petition fee.
>
> For more information on the USPTO’s ASAP! Program, view the *Federal
> Register Notice*
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