AI in Official Patent Searches at the DPMA: What Patent Attorneys Must Now Consider for New Filings (March 2026)

With Communication No. 1/26 of March 2, 2026, the German Patent and Trade Mark Office (DPMA) clarified that examiners may use external electronic research sources “including, where appropriate, applications of artificial intelligence.” At the same time, the DPMA acknowledged something critical: even with “due care,” a residual risk cannot be fully excluded. Specifically, terms, sequences, chemical structures, or text from unpublished applications may become accessible to third parties.