diff --git a/configure.ac b/configure.ac
index 113b78c0cd..1b78649e7f 100644
--- a/configure.ac
+++ b/configure.ac
@@ -27,7 +27,7 @@ dnl
 
 ### Initialize Autoconf
 AC_PREREQ([2.65])
-AC_INIT([GNU Octave], [8.4.0], [https://octave.org/bugs.html], [octave],
+AC_INIT([GNU Octave], [8.4.1], [https://octave.org/bugs.html], [octave],
         [https://www.gnu.org/software/octave/])
 
 ### Declare version numbers
@@ -41,7 +41,7 @@ dnl AC_INIT requires it to be static, not computed from shell variables.
 
 OCTAVE_MAJOR_VERSION=8
 OCTAVE_MINOR_VERSION=4
-OCTAVE_PATCH_VERSION=0
+OCTAVE_PATCH_VERSION=1
 
 dnl PACKAGE_VERSION is set by the AC_INIT VERSION argument.
 OCTAVE_VERSION="$PACKAGE_VERSION"
diff --git a/etc/NEWS.8.md b/etc/NEWS.8.md
index a943876205..c1c2aa691c 100644
--- a/etc/NEWS.8.md
+++ b/etc/NEWS.8.md
@@ -1,3 +1,17 @@
+Summary of bugs fixed for version 8.5.0 (tbd):
+----------------------------------------------------
+
+For (bug #XXXXX) see https://savannah.gnu.org/bugs/?XXXXX
+
+### Improvements and fixes
+
+### GUI
+
+### Build system / Tests
+
+### Documentation
+
+
 Summary of bugs fixed for version 8.4.0 (2023-11-05):
 ----------------------------------------------------