South African provisional patent filings surge in 2025

After declining since 2008 and plunging since 2020, the number of South African provisional patent filings has finally returned to pre-COVID levels … due to AI?

Although, the number of South African provisional patents increased by 74% in 2025, the number of provisional patents drafted and filed by South African patent attorneys only increased by 10%. The vast majority of South African provisional patents are now filed directly by inventors, apparently drafted by AI.

S&Z / GlobalIPCo, which offers low-cost ($49) South African patents online, was the second-largest filer of South African provisional patents in 2025.