IP Trends 2026: Security, Domains and Legal Strategy Now Overlap

In 2026, IP protection is no longer just about registering patents and trademarks; it’s about defending innovation in a digital world where AI and online threats make infringement easier to scale.

Here are the key trends that we believe are shaping how companies will protect their IP in 2026.

1. Web Security Becomes a Core Part of IP Protection

In 2026, web security and IP protection are effectively the same fight. As more valuable assets live online, source code, product documentation, customer platforms, and proprietary datasets, cyberattacks increasingly result in direct IP theft, not just IT disruption.

Regulation Is Forcing Stronger Cyber Governance

Cybersecurity has shifted from a technical IT issue to a board-level business risk. EU regulations like the Network and Information Systems Directive 2 (NIS2) and the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) require organisations in critical and financial sectors to demonstrate systemic risk management, preventative controls, and operational resilience, not just isolated tools.

Under these frameworks, executives are expected to actively govern cyber risk and embed resilience into core business operations or risk significant fines, legal liability, and operational restrictions.

AI Is Scaling Both Attacks and Defence

Threat actors are using agentic AI to automate phishing, impersonation, and vulnerability discovery, while defenders rely on AI to keep pace. TechRadar reports 33% of enterprise applications are expected to feature agentic AI in the near future.

Continuous Monitoring Replaces Periodic Scanning

With expanding cloud and identity-based attack surfaces, businesses are shifting toward continuous exposure management (CEM). Gartner predicts organisations adopting CEM will be 3 times less likely to suffer a breach by 2026.

What this means in 2026: companies will invest in always-on security combining compliance-driven governance, AI-enabled detection, and continuous monitoring to prevent breaches that directly compromise IP.

2. Domain Management Evolves into a Security Discipline

Domains have become one of the most common entry points for phishing, impersonation, and brand abuse, making domain strategy a core pillar of both security and IP governance.

The domain market itself continues to expand. By Q4 2025, the global domain base reached 386.9 million registrations, growing 6.2% year over year (DNIB Quarterly Report Q4 2025).  

More domains mean more opportunity for abuse. Many phishing campaigns now rely on newly registered domains created specifically to impersonate brands, which is why monitoring new registrations and lookalike patterns is becoming standard practice. ICANN has also increased its focus on DNS abuse mitigation, reflecting the rising scale of the issue.

At the same time, companies are expanding into more TLD categories:

• niche gTLDs like .shop, .guru, .coach, .xyz
• geographic ccTLDs, especially in growth markets
• repurposed ccTLDs like .ai, .io, .cc, with .ai leading due to the AI boom

A growing number of large organisations are also exploring dotBrand domains (e.g., .nike) to gain full control of their namespace and reduce impersonation risk.

What this means in 2026: domain portfolios will be managed less like marketing assets and more like digital infrastructure, requiring active governance, monitoring, and enforcement.

3. Brand Protection Shifts to Automation and Always-On Monitoring

Brand protection is becoming more complex as counterfeiters and impersonators move across platforms faster than enforcement teams can react. In 2026, the most successful programs will be those built on continuous monitoring and rapid takedown capability.

The scale of the problem remains huge. OECD and EUIPO data has estimated global counterfeit imports at around $467 billion, highlighting how deeply counterfeiting is embedded in global trade.

What’s changing is how it spreads: marketplaces, social commerce, and short-form video platforms have become major distribution channels for counterfeit goods and brand impersonation.

AI is now being used on both sides; fraudsters scale faster, but brands can also use automated detection tools to scan:

• marketplaces and social media
• app stores
• fake websites
• suspicious product listings
• unauthorised logo and content usage

What this means in 2026: brand protection becomes a technology-driven operation, where success depends on speed, coverage, and automation, not just legal rights.

Partnerships are also becoming a bigger lever in 2026. Takedown outcomes on social media and marketplaces increasingly depend on whether there is an enforcement channel in place, so brands are prioritising action where those routes exist and response times are predictable.

That is why service providers, like Abion, are actively cultivating and maintaining good relationships with platforms and marketplaces to secure faster, more consistent removals and deliver more reliable outcomes for clients at scale.

4. IP Legal Services Become More Strategic (and More Digital)

In 2026, IP legal services are shifting from administrative filing support to strategic business protection, as intangible assets become the foundation of corporate value. WIPO reports that investment in intangible assets has grown three times faster than investment in tangible assets since 2008, reinforcing why patents, trademarks, software, and data now sit at the centre of growth and competitiveness.

This trend is being accelerated by four major forces:

From Broad Coverage to Targeted IP Strategies

In 2026, companies are shifting from broad, across-the-board filing strategies to more targeted and strategic protection. Rather than aiming for maximal global coverage, businesses are prioritizing filings in major commercial markets.

Portfolios are being streamlined to focus on high-value brands, core technologies, and revenue-generating assets, with increased reliance on trademark watch services and clearance analytics to reduce costs and mitigate legal risk.

AI is Creating New Legal Complexity

Legal teams are being pulled into new questions around:

• AI-generated content ownership
• copyright exposure from training datasets
• patentability of AI-assisted inventions
• trade secret protection for models and pipelines
• Inclusion of AI-specific clauses in contracts

This complexity is pushing brands to seek legal counsel not just for filings, but for policy, compliance, and governance frameworks that limit exposure before enforcement actions become necessary.

Global Filing Strategy Must Prioritise Asia

Legal planning is also becoming more global by necessity. WIPO’s World Intellectual Property Indicators 2025, the top 20 trademark offices in 2024 were spread across several regions, with eight in Asia, six in Europe and two in North America.

Asian offices dominated global trademark activity, accounting for 65.6% of worldwide filings. China remained the most active trademark office in 2024, receiving approximately 7.3 million trademark applications.

For brand owners, this means protection strategies can no longer focus primarily on Europe and the US. Filing, monitoring, and enforcement strategies must increasingly take China and the wider Asian market into account from the outset.

Europe’s Patent Route Choices Are Now a Business Decision

In Europe, the growing complexity of patent filing routes (national, European validation, or unitary effect) is making patent strategy more commercial and cost-driven.

This is already reflected in filing behaviour: in 2024, over 50% of European patents filed by Spanish applicants were validated with unitary effect, above the European average.

As a result, legal services are becoming more advisory-led, helping companies align protection decisions with market priorities, enforcement needs, and long-term ROI.

Enforcement Is Becoming Central to IP Value

Finally, enforcement is moving to the forefront. Counterfeiting continues to grow at scale: the OECD–EUIPO estimates global counterfeit imports at $467 billion, or 2.3% of global imports, rising to 4.7% within the EU.

This is pushing brand owners to rely more heavily on legal partners who can support structured enforcement programs, combining monitoring, takedowns, platform cooperation, and public authority coordination.

What this means in 2026: brand owners will increasingly need legal support that strengthens global filing strategy, improves portfolio ROI, and enables faster enforcement, because. Protecting IP value is now as much about defending rights as registering them.

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