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Huawei leads in global patent filing again, CATL begins to safeguard its technologies

Jingyue Hsiao, DIGITIMES Asia, Taipei 0

Credit: AFP

The latest report shows that China-based companies and institutions remained the most active in patent filings, and CATL expressed a strong will to fortify its leading status.

The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) released its annual ranking in patent, trademark, and industrial design filings. According to the report, the overall patent filing through its Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) system declined by 1.8% year-on-year to 272,600 cases in 2023, the first drop in 14 years due to rising interest rates and economic uncertainty. China continued to lead in the ranking with 69,610 cases in 2023, down from 70,017 a year ago, followed by the US and Japan.

WIPO said in a press release that higher interest rates and economic uncertainties cast a shadow on innovation activity in 2023. Still, declining inflation rates forecast for 2024 and hotspots like India and Southeast Asia may provide more business confidence and innovation investments.

While some countries experienced slower growth rates, others surged ahead. Among the top 15 countries, India and Turkey notably recorded the swiftest growth rates at 44.58% and 8.47%, respectively. The Netherlands, France, and South Korea witnessed an uptick in patent applications. By sector, computer technology accounted for 10.2% of global patent filings, followed closely by digital communication (9.4%), electrical machinery, medical technology, and pharmaceuticals. Those five sectors constituted about 40% of all patent filings through the PCT system in 2023.

By patent applicants, Huawei remained in its leading position with 6,494 patent filings, followed by Samsung Electronics's 4,387 and Qualcomm's 3,855. The number of patent applications by CATL surged from 266 the previous year to 1,799 in 2023, propelling its ranking from 84th globally to 8th, indicating a strong will to cement its leading status and safeguard its innovations and technologies. Meanwhile, Beijing Zitiao Network Technology and Meta saw its patent filing spike over the past year.

Global patent filing by applicant

2023 overall position in PCT ranking

Position changed in overall PCT ranking

Applicant's Name

Origin

2022

2023

Change (%)

1

0

Huawei Technologies

China

7,689

6,494

-15.54

2

0

Samsung Electronics

Republic of Korea

4,387

3,924

-10.55

3

0

Qualcomm

US

3,855

3,410

-11.54

4

0

Mitsubishi Electric

Japan

2,320

2,152

-7.24

5

2

BOE Technology Group

China

1,884

1,988

5.52

6

3

LG Electronics Inc.

Republic of Korea

1,793

1,887

5.24

7

-2

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (Publ)

Sweden

2,158

1,863

-13.67

8

84

CATL

China

266

1,799

576.32

9

-3

Guang Dong Oppo Mobile Telecommunications

China

1,963

1,766

-10.04

10

-3

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation

Japan

1,884

1,760

-6.58

11

2

ZTE Corporation

China

1,479

1,738

17.51

12

-2

Panasonic Intellectual Property Management

Japan

1,776

1,722

-3.04

13

-2

Vivo Mobile Communication

China

1,515

1,631

7.66

14

7

Beijing Xiaomi Mobile Software

China

913

1,603

75.58

15

-1

NEC Corporation

Japan

1,428

1,592

11.48

16

-4

Sony Group Corporation

Japan

1,513

1,433

-5.29

17

0

LG Energy Solution, Ltd.

Republic of Korea

1,186

1,423

19.98

18

-2

Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC

US

1,271

1,350

6.22

19

-4

Robert Bosch Corporation

Germany

1,290

1,307

1.32

20

-1

Murata Manufacturing

Japan

1,043

1,051

0.77

Source: WIPO, March 2024

Top 10 patent applicants by growth

2023 overall position in PCT ranking

Position changed in overall PCT ranking

Applicant's Name

Origin

2022

2023

Change (%)

8

84

CATL

China

266

1,799

576.32

27

58

Beijing Zitiao Network Technology

China

278

810

191.37

50

121

Meta Platforms Technologies, LLC

US

164

437

166.46

30

42

Honor Device

China

304

753

147.7

14

7

Beijing Xiaomi Mobile Software

China

913

1,603

75.58

32

21

Qingdao Haier Air Conditioner General.

China

470

706

50.21

33

17

Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology

China

486

696

43.21

21

9

NTT Docomo, Inc.

Japan

764

1,016

32.98

36

9

Kyocera Corporation

Japan

508

632

24.41

22

7

Changxin Memory Technologies, Inc.

China

786

954

21.37

Source: WIPO, March 2024

Top 10 patent filing origin

Origin

2022

2023 Estimate

Change (%)

China

70,017

69,610

-0.58

USA

58,823

55,678

-5.35

Japan

50,351

48,879

-2.92

Republic of Korea

22,023

22,288

1.2

Germany

17,469

16,916

-3.17

France

7,761

7,916

2

UK

5,716

5,586

-2.27

Switzerland

5,446

5,382

-1.18

Sweden

4,481

4,323

-3.53

Netherlands

4,025

4,258

5.79

Source: WIPO, March 2024