EPO places AI and quality at the centre of SACEPO discussions
Quality improvements and AI development remain central to the EPO’s patent strategy.
The European Patent Office used the 58th meeting of the Standing Advisory Committee before the EPO to discuss patent quality, AI and the digital transformation of the European patent system.
The annual Main SACEPO meeting brought together users of the patent system to review the EPO’s Quality Action Plan 2026, legal changes, the Unitary Patent system and activities of the EPO Observatory and IP Lab.
A key focus was the use of AI to support the patent-granting process. The EPO said AI tools are intended to help examiners improve efficiency, consistency and completeness, while all patent decisions remain under human responsibility.
Participants also discussed progress on quality measures, stakeholder feedback and continued investment in examiner expertise, quality assurance and user engagement.
The meeting reviewed the EPO’s transition to a paperless patent-granting process, planned for April 2027, as well as updates to MyEPO services and DOCX filing.
Discussions also covered recent legal changes, the operational development of the Unitary Patent system, patent validation agreements, implementation of the WIPO treaty on genetic resources and traditional knowledge, and new activities from the EPO Observatory on Patents and Technology.
Why does it matter?
The meeting shows how AI is becoming part of the everyday infrastructure of patent administration. For patent offices, AI can support searches, classification, workflows and consistency, but legal certainty still depends on human responsibility and procedural safeguards. The EPO’s approach also reflects a wider shift towards fully digital public services in intellectual property, where automation, quality control and user trust need to develop together.
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