Samsung Beats IBM, Apple, Intel, Google For 2022 Patent Crown; 56% Of U.S. Patents Go To Foreign Firms

For the primary time since 1993, IBM doesn’t lead the listing of firms that gained patents in america for brand new innovations and improvements. Samsung is the brand new crown holder with a large 6,248 patents granted in 2022, whereas IBM got here in second with 4,389.

That’s down a staggering 49% from the 8,681 patents IBM gained in 2021.

The change on the prime of the patent leaderboard is indicative of a broader transition in innovation away from america and in direction of Asia, says IFI Claims Patent Providers, a subsidiary of London-based digital analysis expertise firm Digital Science.

“Wanting on the High 50 alone, IFI’s knowledge famous a shift from West to East,” the corporate stated in a press launch. “Along with Samsung’s ascendance, Asian-based firms on the listing earned 14% extra patents than Western international locations in 2022 (41,055 vs. 35,365), far eclipsing Asia’s edge in 2021 of simply 1%. Japan, China and South Korea alone accounted for 40,114 patents, in comparison with 32,130 for United States firms.”

Lengthy-time Samsung rival Apple gained 2,285 patents, down 10% from the prior yr, whereas Amazon and Google gained 1,863 and 1,548, respectively.

One other American big whose patent wins dipped considerably is Microsoft. The Redmond-based software program firm gained 1,815 patents in 2022, however that’s down 25% from 2021’s 2,417.

High 20 patent winners of 2022

1. Samsung: 6,248
2. IBM: 4,398
3. Taiwan Semiconductor: 3,024
4. Huawei: 2,836
5. Canon: 2,694
6. LG: 2,641
7. Qualcomm: 2,625
8. Intel: 2,418
9. Apple: 2,285
10. Toyota: 2,214
11. BOE Know-how Group: 2,795
12. Samsung Show: 2,106
13. Micron Know-how: 1,920
14. Amazon: 1,863
15. Microsoft: 1,815
16. Google: 1,548
17. Hyundai: 1,436
18. Sony: 1,397
19. Ericsson: 1,397
20. Honda: 1,346

IBM’s decline in patent wins displays a shift within the firm’s technique in direction of open supply software program, says IFI. In reality, total, 2022 is the third straight yr to see declines in patent grants — a interval that additionally coincides with the Covid pandemic — regardless that patent purposes had been up 2%, a continuation of a five-year development in will increase.

However there’s a lag impact in operation between purposes and grants.

“The continued development in purposes is encouraging for innovation,” stated Mike Baycroft, CEO of IFI CLAIMS Patent Providers. “First comes the submitting, then usually 12-18 months later the appliance turns into public, then in one other 18 months the grant is issued, so we anticipate to see a post-COVID upturn within the subsequent couple of years.”

There’s additionally a large lag of 700,000 unexamined patent purposes on the USPTO, america Patent and Trademark Workplace.

Whereas American firms led all nations in variety of patents granted, 56% of all patent grants had been to international firms, a reality the IFI refers to as “beautiful.” American firms earned 142,703 patents, greater than 3 times the following nationwide competitor, Japan. Japanese firms gained 46,504 patents, whereas Chinese language firms gained 24,538 — 19% greater than 2021 — South Korean firms gained 22,359, and Germany firms gained 14,746 patents.

Scorching applied sciences in patents

Autonomous autos is the primary patent class proper now, with a compound annual development fee of 64.3% between 2018 and 2022. Different buzzy classes embody knowledge processing, drilling applied sciences, and — bizarrely — electrically operated smoking units.

The highest 10 quickest rising expertise areas by patent grants are:

1. Autonomous autos
2. Electrical digital knowledge processing
3. Drilling applied sciences for oil/gasoline/water
4. Computing primarily based on organic fashions
5. Electrical smoking units
6. Quantum computer systems
7. Cigarettes
8. 3D tradition (organic processes for learning cells)
9. Machine studying
10. Respiratory masks

“We’re not but seeing a shift towards renewable vitality, and a few of the quick rising sub-technology areas are targeted on bettering and extra effectively harvesting conventional fossil gasoline sources,” says Baycroft.

Extra detailed experiences on patent purposes, grants, and traits can be found on IFI’s web site.