February 14, 2023
Asian-based companies have extended their lead over Western companies by 14% as the West continues to embrace equity over merit while Asian companies concentrate on merit over equity and the shift is becoming more evident.
For the first time since 1993, IBM no longer leads the list of companies that won patents in the United States for new inventions and innovations. That crown has been awarded to South Korea’s Samsung with a massive 6,248 patents granted in 2022, while IBM came in a distant second with 4,389, according to Forbes.
That’s a 49% drop from the 8,681 patents IBM won in 2021. Samsung’s rival Apple only won 2,285 patents, down another 10% from a year ago.
Samsung is currently going the Bill Gates route. Microsoft holds important patents in software and operating systems, which guarantees a monopoly in its respective market for generations to come. Samsung currently controls OLED patents, 5G, microchip technology, and other essentials Apple needs to survive.
For example, back in 2013, President Obama needed to overturn an ITC ruling that would have prevented Apple from selling many devices using 3G technology, which Samsung controls, according to Reuters.
Samsung currently controls 4G and 5G technology, which caused Apple to call a truce with the South Korean company back in 2018.
“Looking at the Top 50 alone, IFI’s data noted a shift from West to East. In addition to Samsung’s ascendance, Asian-based companies on the list earned 14% more patents than Western countries in 2022 (41,055 vs. 35,365), far eclipsing Asia’s edge in 2021 of just 1%. Japan, China and South Korea alone accounted for 40,114 patents, compared to 32,130 for United States companies,” says IFI Claims Patent Services.
Toyota has also increased its volume of solid-state battery patents. The patents Toyota now controls sets up roadblocks for companies like Tesla that wish to move beyond lithium-ion technology in the future. Asian-owned QuantumScape is the only American company that owns more than 100 patents on solid-state batteries.
Top Patent Winners of 2022
- Samsung: 6,248
- IBM: 4,398
- Taiwan Semiconductor: 3,024
- Huawei: 2,836
- Canon: 2,694
- LG: 2,641
- Qualcomm: 2,625
- Intel: 2,418
- Apple: 2,285
- Toyota: 2,214
- BOE Technology Group: 2,795
- Samsung Display: 2,106
- Micron Technology: 1,920
- Amazon: 1,863
- Microsoft: 1,815
- Google: 1,548
- Hyundai: 1,436
- Sony: 1,397
- Ericsson: 1,397
- Honda: 1,346
While American companies led all nations in the number of patents granted by a single country, 56% of all patents granted were from foreign companies (Japan, South Korea, China, Germany, Taiwan) and IFI considers that revelation “stunning.”
Japan and South Korea, both countries combined have a substantially smaller population than the United States, punched above their weight class, and led in key technological advancement.
Feature Image via U.S. Army DEVCOM