Three themes from London, and what they mean for trademark teams, IP leaders, and law firms
This May, the International Trademark Association Annual conference (INTA) 2026 brought the global trademark community together in London. And the conversations felt different from last year at INTA. There was less discussion about what might be coming, and more discussion about how IP work is already changing.
Across Anaqua's booth at #1831 and our breakfast briefing, three themes ran through almost every conversation we had:
Here is what we heard, and what we think it means for the year ahead.
One theme rose to the top consistently: how AI is reshaping the IP landscape and how it can be applied to make trademark management easier.
During Anaqua's breakfast briefing, "Beyond the System of Records: An AI-Driven Platform of Intelligence", Florian Traub, a partner at Pinsent Masons) and Toni Nijm, Anaqua's Chief Product Officer, offered practical insights into the future of AI in IP.
Florian Traub shared his perspective on what he believes AI can deliver to law firms today: "Making processes more streamlined, more efficient, while also focusing on what is actually strategically important to clients."
He expanded on this point, saying, "The expectation is not that we use AI - that expectation is already there. Now, it is about deploying AI in a meaningful and secure way."Toni Nijm elaborated on what makes that meaningful deployment possible: "AI agents cannot do anything useful without context. That's where magic happens."
As AI becomes an integral part of IP work, the focus is shifting to the fundamentals. Teams that invest in cleaning data and designing thoughtful workflows are far better positioned to implement AI in practical and scalable ways.
The discussion between Toni Nijm and Florian Traub in the briefing was reinforced by what we heard at the booth. Instead of asking whether to deploy AI, IP teams are now asking which problems AI should solve first, who will own the results, and how the work will be checked. Some of the questions we heard most often at the booth were:
The most useful answers included these tips:
The closing takeaway from the briefing captured it best: AI should be in the background with people in the lead.
Watch the Breakfast Briefing recording
The second theme focused on how IP teams can collaborate more effectively. As IP work moves across more borders, more vendors, and more handoffs, the risk to IP teams is a fragmented network.
On this topic, there were a few key areas discussed:
This is the vision of the connected IP network - not a feature in a product but a way of operating. Anaqua is built to lead this next phase, with more than 20 years of experience developing IP technology and collaboration as a founding principal. That foundation has been further strengthened by RightHub and Patrix joining Anaqua, expanding our law firm community, European presence, and reach across the IP ecosystem.
"When everyone in the IP ecosystem - companies, law firms, agents, and vendors - can operate in the same connected environment, the whole industry will move faster. That's the power of the IP network we are building."
- Jon-James Kirtland, Senior Director, RightHub, Anaqua
The third theme cut to the heart of today's risk environment: as deepfakes grow more sophisticated, consumers are finding it harder to distinguish legitimate brands from impostors, exposing a widening gap between commercial reality and the limits of trademark law.
Infringement requires use of a sign in a way likely to cause confusion or take unfair advantage. How does a deepfake of a CEO endorsing a competitor's product, or an AI-generated "reviewer" pushing a counterfeit, fit against those criteria?
Some of these issues can be addressed through passing-off claims; others fall under personality and image rights, defamation, or platform-liability regimes. The practical takeaway from INTA: brand managers will increasingly rely on a hybrid of trademark enforcement plus passing-off, plus personality and right-of-publicity actions, plus notice-and-action takedowns, and where appropriate, criminal referral.
The legislative picture is moving fast and unevenly. Denmark's move to give individuals copyright-style control over their own likeness, India's amended IT Rules introducing deepfake disclosure obligations, and a fast-evolving patchwork of US state laws all sit alongside rather than within trademark law itself. A question at INTA was how far this legislation will internationalize, and how brand owners should structure enforcement in the meantime.
What is no longer optional: AI-driven monitoring, automated takedowns, and proactive platform engagement have moved from add-ons to baseline expectations - a point reinforced by Simon Lotze, Attorney, Andersen Partners, and Timmi K. Rysgaard, Product Owner, Brand Protection, Anaqua in our recent webinar: AI in Brand Protection: Moving Faster Without Losing Control.
Two things matter for the year ahead:
A few moments from the week:
Sessions at INTA on M&A, intangible asset valuation, and IP budgeting reinforced a clear shift: trademarks and brand IP are no longer viewed primarily as defensive tools. They are increasingly recognized as core drivers of corporate value-and central to how organizations think about growth, risk, and investment.
At the Anaqua booth, the energy didn't let up. There were live presentations and demos, great coffee, and Hubster the robot dog made his rounds. IP trivia with prizes added a lighter note to busy days, and lots of discussions on where the industry is headed.
We were also delighted to welcome the Patrix team as part of the Anaqua family for the first time at INTA. Conversations across our combined community made one thing clear: when trusted expertise is connected through a shared network, its value multiplies.
Trademark management is in the middle of a real shift: AI is reshaping IP processes; networks are becoming operationally critical, and brand protection now demands nearly real-time defensibility, stretching teams beyond the limits of legacy IP management tools.
We hope you will collaborate with us on building the future of IP. What we heard IP teams need next include: AI-native IP management platforms that puts professionals in the lead, a connected network that brings corporates, law firms, and agents into closer alignment, and brand protection designed to operate at speed-with governance and audit ready rigor built in.
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