IP Australia’s latest Australian IP Report 2026 records a sharp rise in filing activity during 2025: trade mark applications reached 97,345, up 13.3%, while design applications increased to 10,296, up 7.1%. Both categories set new records. Standard patent applications, by contrast, eased by 0.5% to 30,348, suggesting that technology filings have moved into a more selective phase rather than following the same expansion seen in brands and product appearance.
The report’s research on firm performance gives the figures a practical edge. Businesses tend to show sustained gains in productivity, sales efficiency and revenue after receiving their first patent or trade mark. For companies entering or scaling in Australia, the filing surge is a signal to review trade mark clearance, product design protection and launch timing earlier in the process. The small fall in standard patents should not be read as weak innovation; it points more to a need for better prioritisation of patentable assets with clear commercial use.
