Huawei, Samsung, and Qualcomm were the top international patent filers in 2023, with China-based companies well ahead of their high-tech rivals from South Korea and the US, according to recently released data from the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). Despite heavy US sanctions severely impacting its ability to function in global markets, Huawei easily led the rest of the companies worldwide with the top number of patents filed.
China-based entities led all other countries in terms of the total number of patents filed. The total number of international patent applications filed globally was 272,600 in 2023, down 1.8% from 2023, but China remained on top with 69,610 applications, easily outstripping the United States, which had 58,823.
The WIPO determines the number of patent applications filed by an entity through its Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) system. PCT patents are filed by entities wishing to protect their inventions in multiple countries with a single international patent application. Some companies do not file for a PCT patent application with all of their inventions, so while the WIPO rankings are important, they may not reflect all the patent applications filed in all countries.
Companies
Regarding corporate filings, Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei Technologies maintained its position as the top filer with 6,494 published PCT applications. South Korea's Samsung Electronics and the U.S.-based Qualcomm followed with 3,924 and 3,410 applications, respectively. Mitsubishi Electric of Japan and BOE Technology of China also featured in the top five, with 2,152 and 1,988 applications, respectively.
In fact, the entire Top 50 of PCT patent filers is dominated by high-tech companies that develop hardware, telecom technologies, and software. Meanwhile, Big Tech giants like Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Meta are not in the Top 15. Last year, companies like Oppo and Vivo were bigger inventors than Apple and Microsoft, whereas AMD and Nvidia were absent from the list.
Countries
Regarding countries, China continued to lead the world in PCT patent applications, submitting 69,610 applications in 2023, albeit with a minor decrease of 0.6% compared to the previous year. The United States followed in second place with 55,678 applications, experiencing a more significant decline of 5.3%. Japan, South Korea, and Germany completed the top five, each with varying changes in their application volumes.
India stood out as a significant contributor to the growth in patent filings, with a 44.6% increase in PCT applications compared to the previous year. According to WIPO, this follows a 25.9% growth in the prior year, indicating a strengthening and expanding innovation ecosystem in India. Similarly, Türkiye experienced an 8.5% growth in PCT filings in 2023. Other countries that experienced growth in patent filings were the Netherlands (+5.8%), France (+2%), and the Republic of Korea (+1.2%).
"Countries in Asia now represent 55.7% of international patent applications via WIPO – up from 40.5% just one decade ago," said Tang.
Industries
The most noticeable technology fields for PCT patent applications were computer technology, telecommunications, electrical machinery, medical technology, and pharmaceuticals. These fields accounted for approximately two-fifths of all published PCT applications in 2023. Notably, electrical machinery and transport experienced the fastest growth rates among the top technology fields.
Indeed, industry giants like Huawei, Qualcomm, Samsung, Ericsson, and Nokia filed for numerous telco-related PCT patent applications covering 5G and Wi-Fi technologies last year.
"Higher interest rates and economic uncertainties cast a shadow on innovation activity in 2023," said Daren Tang, WIPO director general. "But declining inflation rates forecast for 2024 and hotspots like India, Southeast Asia, and beyond may provide more business confidence and innovation investments, setting the stage for a recovery in international IP fillings later this year. Despite these shorter-term dips, longer-term trends show IP use rising steadily in an increasingly global, digitalized economy and spreading worldwide as economies develop."
