2025 Global Trends & Insights

Truly understanding the value of patents (and companies that invent) requires looking at them from several vantage points. Patent grants showcase the winners of market protection. Patent applications act as an innovation measure of companies on the cutting edge of technology. IFI CLAIMS’ Global 250 ranks the world’s largest patent holders, measured by active patent families. This list, based on IFI’s proprietary Ultimate Owner capabilities, includes any corporate subsidiaries under the parent company umbrella. Why is it important to analyze active patent families? Patents expire after a time frame that usually spans 20 years. After that, if the invention is still desirable, any company can make use of it. So it’s important to understand the robustness of an active portfolio because it is indicative of a dominant position in a given technology niche. Not only that, but multiple, complementary inventions enlarge the field of protection across the globe. Think of this particular ranking as patents currently on active duty, so to speak. All together, the 250 companies on this year’s ranking maintain some 14 percent of all active patent families around the globe. That’s quite an innovation engine concentrated in relatively few companies. Below are the year’s highlights: 

The top ten

Chinese entities dominate the upper echelon of the 250, with seven of the top ten places (in addition to four of the top five). Samsung, with more than 106,000 active patent families, is the only company from South Korea to break the top ten. Japan holds two spots: Canon and Panasonic. All ten positions are taken by Asian companies. The first appearance of a U.S. company in the 250? IBM, coming in at number 20.

The 250, companies across countries

Though entities incorporated in China inhabit the top spots, when it comes to the country with the highest number of companies maintaining active patent families, Japan is the leader with 30% of the total, compared to China’s 29%. What might this suggest? A proven, nimble innovation ecosystem. Japan’s business landscape has a large number of well-established multinationals that have long maintained IP portfolios around the globe. The U.S. takes a trailing third place with 18%. All other countries have single-digit slices of the patent pie. 

Families and countries

Measured by the sheer number of active patent families, here again, China towers above with 41% of the aggregate, compared to Japan with 27% and the U.S. with just 14%. China patents prolifically thanks to the sizable, government-backed corporations and research centers that put the country over the top when it comes to this metric. 

Code review: A deeper dive into the Global 250 

Patents are organized within a system, known as Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC), in order to categorize all the technologies that go into inventions. Analyzing these patent codes is an important due diligence step that helps investors find trends, map out the competitive landscapes, and form theories about breakthrough innovations that companies are pursuing. So we thought it worthwhile to dig deeper and examine the principal codes for the top five entities in the Global 250. By tabulating published patent documents around the world for calendar year 2024, IFI was able to lay out the most sought-after tech from the entities with the highest number of active families.

Tech classes

It’s no surprise that China State Construction is inventing around scaffolding, insulation and foundations, as in this patent for construction equipment and method. Or that appliance manufacturer Midea’s top patenting technology is air conditioning, found in this patent. But notice how many of the technology classes focus on innovation surrounding climate change—including making the grid smart or storing energy, such as this patent from State Grid Corp of China. Not only do climate mitigation inventions apply to many patenting companies, but they’re vital to sustaining business in general and to maintaining a competitive edge.

Regional divides

Asia looms large, by far, on IFI’s Global 250. But it’s also worth drilling down into both the U.S. and Europe. IBM (20) has the most prominent standing in active families by U.S.-based corporations, followed by Microsoft (32) and Qualcomm (34). Wireless communication and transmission of digital information are the foremost technologies by U.S. companies in the ranking. Qualcomm holds the highest number of patent documents in wireless communications with 14,366. Apple maintains the second highest number of patents in this technology with 4,186. Some of Apple’s wireless handiwork can be seen in this recently granted patent for assisted cellular connectivity. 

In Europe, electrical digital data processing, health diagnosis, batteries and control devices for vehicles are among the top tech codes, which makes sense when you consider that Bosch (24), Siemens (36) and Porsche (41) are the highest-ranking companies on the continent. Dutch multinational Philips retains the most patents (2,678) under the health diagnosis code, including this system for measuring core body temperature. The company applied for the invention in 2024. The patent is still pending. 

Analyzing Asia

Breaking down Asia by leading countries, electrical digital data processing is either the first or second most important technology that companies are pursuing. Reduction in greenhouse gases and wireless networks also figure prominently. Patents in pictorial communication weigh broadly; after all, Samsung, LG, and Panasonic are major companies in the region.  

In South Korea, Samsung holds the utmost spot in all five of the top technology areas. This system for supporting seamless indirect interactions touches three of the five technologies.  

In Japan, semiconductors are the foremost technology, and Tokyo Electron is the company with the most patents in the area (2,403) for 2024. This Tokyo Electron patent, for instance, is for an ion-assisted etch.