IPable

🔍 How Prior Art Searching Actually Works Before a patent can be granted, examiners must determine whether an invention is truly new and inventive. To do that, they follow a structured process to identify the closest prior art — earlier patents or publications that could impact patentability. According to a study from the UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO), carried out by Cardiff University in 2020 — before the current AI boom — the process typically looks like this: 1️⃣ Examine the Claims Identify key terms and potential keywords directly from the claims. 2️⃣ Define the Search Statement A critical step where the examiner distils the core subject matter and determines what exactly needs to be searched. 3️⃣ Identify Relevant Classifications Using keywords and technical expertise, they determine which classification codes are most likely to contain related inventions. 4️⃣ Run a Background Search Look for synonyms, alternative terms, and domain-specific language to refine the search strategy. 5️⃣ Build Search Queries Develop queries using: Keywords Classification codes Boolean operators 6️⃣ Retrieve Likely Relevant Patents The search system returns documents that might be relevant to the invention. 7️⃣ Filter & Screen the Results Examiners use highlights, organisational tools, and manual review to identify the most relevant documents. 8️⃣ Narrow Down Using Drawings & Manual Interpretation Drawings and detailed review help resolve ambiguous concepts and identify close technical similarities. 9️⃣ (Optional) Search Non-Patent Literature Check published research or online sources when necessary. 🔟 Form a Final Judgement Based on the closest prior art, the examiner evaluates novelty and inventive step. 📌 Why it matters A robust prior art search shapes both the strength and the outcome of a patent application. ❓ Questions for IP professionals - Is this process still relevant in your day-to-day work? - Which steps, if any, have been replaced or accelerated by AI tools? - How does your current search workflow look today? - Are there still pain points, even with AI assistance? We would love to hear from your perspective! Share your experience in the comments.

A warm welcome to the bold ideas shaping Incubator program batch #4. 💚 We kicked off the program for the last time in our old space in a special way, as the 11 startups joined us for “Kaffee und Kuchen” and shared their visions and ideas with the CF #community. A great beginning to a journey shaped by collaboration, hands on learning, and iteration. 🙌 We are excited to see what they build in the weeks ahead. ✨ #CampusFounders #StartupCommunity #Entrepreneurship #InnovationEcosystem #BuildLearnIterate #FoundersJourney SlideCoach I QCipher I Wahrify I Marsstein GmbH I VERASPECTA AI I PatentMuse I Melotris Gayatri Gautham I Maria Kreismann I Xhesika Gerbi

What a day at Slush’D Heilbronn! 🚀 We had the incredible opportunity to take part in the ultimate startup festival: amazing energy, inspiring talks, and so many great connections. We had the chance to see startups pitch, including ZORO Energy and left with tons of ideas and motivation. Maybe next year it’ll be our turn on stage! A huge thanks to the Slush'D team for making this amazing event possible and to Philipp Leitlein from Campus Founders for his continuous support. #HeilbronnSlushD #CampusFounders #StartupFestival

An interesting — and concerning — reality: Can a new invention idea ever be truly protected when productivity tools risk exposing sensitive invention data? In today’s world, if you’re not using AI at work, you’re falling behind. But if you are using AI, how do you make sure your confidential data stays protected? That’s exactly what we’re solving at PatentMuse — building an AI-supported platform that empowers attorneys and innovators to work smarter without compromising security or discretion. If this resonates with you or your team, reach out to us — we’d love to share more. #patent #datasecurity #AI

🚀 Big News! Our next milestone has officially begun — and we’re thrilled to share that PatentMuse has been accepted into the Campus Founders Incubator Program 🎉 We’re deeply grateful to Campus Founders for their incredible support, which allows us to stay fully focused on building our solution. With their guidance, we’re accelerating development — and our MVP is on the way! Stay tuned for more updates as we bring PatentMuse closer to reality. 💡 If you are curious about what are we building, visit us at: patentmuse.de Yacoub Cherouali, Mounir Tayebi, Lucie, Hien Pham

We’re proud to announce that PatentMuse won 1st place at AI Start Batch #4! 🥇✨ This recognition reinforces our mission: making patent search faster, more accurate, and more intuitive for lawyers, R&D teams, startups, and researchers. 🚀 Winning also gives us a direct invitation to pitch for funding — another step toward bringing real impact to those who need it most. #PatentMuse #CampusFounders #AIStart #LegalTech #Innovation