Is a sale conducted in secret considered prior art under AIA regulations?

Under the America Invents Act (AIA), prior art is defined by specific criteria, particularly emphasizing whether certain disclosures are made accessible to the public. For a sale to be considered prior art, it typically must be public. Thus, a sale conducted in secret does not meet the threshold for being prior art, as it is not publicly accessible, and therefore those details won't be relevant in assessing novelty or non-obviousness during patent examination. The focus of determining prior art revolves around public disclosures, making any private sales irrelevant in this context. Consequently, an undisclosed or secret transaction does not qualify as prior art under the AIA.