Artificial Intelligence (AI) Assistant Tools Patent Examination Modernization (Patent AI)

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) awarded a fixed-price, single-award Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA) #1333-LB-24-A-00001 to Four Points Technology, LLC under the authority of Federal Acquisition Regulation 8.405-3, utilizing the GSA Multiple Award Schedule. This non-competitive procurement, justified under GSAR 538.7104 as a brand-name sole-source acquisition, is for an AI-powered Software as a Service (SaaS) tool designed to modernize patent examination processes. The solution, developed by Google Cloud Platform and Patlytics, Inc. and resold by Four Points Technology, delivers advanced prior art search capabilities, automated claim-to-citation mapping aligned with 35 U.S.C. §§ 102, 103, and 112, and documented quality metrics to validate search accuracy and Office Action outputs. The tool must be fully operational by June 2026 and is required to achieve FedRAMP certification within the contract timeline while maintaining an active SOC 2 Type II attestation for information security controls. The acquisition followed extensive market research, including 174 RFI responses and proof-of-concept evaluations with six vendors, with Four Points Technology/Google/Patlytics identified as the only vendor capable of meeting both technical requirements and the aggressive deployment deadline. The base contract period runs from June 1, 2026, to May 31, 2027, with a single 12-month option period extending through May 31, 2028. Total estimated contract value is $23,000,000, covering the base year and option period without itemized line-item pricing. The place of performance is Alexandria, Virginia, where USPTO examiners will access the cloud-based tool. No physical packaging, marking, or delivery requirements apply as the procurement is entirely digital, and inspection and acceptance occur remotely based on compliance with FedRAMP, SOC 2 Type II, and federal AI governance standards related to transparency, explainability, and bias mitigation. Contract administration is managed by David Sheppard of the USPTO’s Office of the Chief Financial Officer, though specific details on payment, accounting codes, invoicing systems, and formal COR/COTR appointments are not provided in the documentation.