European Innovation Remains Strong: The EPO Patent Index 2024

The Patent Index 2024, recently published by the European Patent Office (EPO), provides a rich dataset from which key patent trends can be identified.

The data shows that demand for patents remained at a high level comparable to 2023, reflecting the continued strength of innovation across key industries.

According to the EPO’s latest data, strong filings were seen in Computer Technology, up by 3.3% to  16,815 filings, Electrical Machinery, Apparatus, and Energy, up by a huge 8.9%, to 16,142 filings, Transport, up by 3.5% to 10,026 filings, and Biotechnology, up by 5.4% to 8,479 filings.

It is clear these sectors cover key technologies currently reshaping industries and societies worldwide – AI, digital technologies, green technologies (which relate to energy and transportation), innovative healthcare, and agriculture.

Some trends and insights are noted below, but as with any data set, care must be taken in drawing conclusions, and the below comments are intended to spark discussion and interest rather than offer definitive drivers or reasons for particular filing statistics.

Computing and Digital Communications Remain Strong

The EPO statistics highlight that digital technologies remain a strong focus for innovation, with Computer Technology filings continuing to rise. Even though patents filed in the Digital Communication field are down by 6.3%, this remains the third highest field for patent filings with 15,983 filings. Rapid advances in the capabilities and applications for machine learning and AI in various industries may play a part in driving patent filings as well as the continued importance of communication technologies.

Computer Technology – Number of patent applications and grants (From the EPO: Link to data here.)

Looking at the top ten applicants in Computer Technology in 2024, digital communications companies continue to dominate, with Samsung leading the list, overtaking last year’s top filer Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. LG, Qualcomm, and Ericsson all feature in the top 10 filers too. Focussing specifically on Digital Communications as a sector, Qualcomm, Inc., Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd., L M Ericsson AB, Samsung Group, and Nokia Corporation lead the filing numbers.

Top 10 applicants in Computer Technology (From the EPO: Link to data here.)

Top 10 applicants in Digital Communication (From the EPO: Link to data here.)

Green Technology and Energy In the Spotlight

There is evidence of a clear push to innovate in the Energy sector with a growth in filings taking off from around 2020. There is a significant 8.9% increase in filings in 2024 to place this sector second overall in filing numbers. Concerns about climate change and a need for improved sustainability and clean energy correlate with the focus on innovation in the Energy sector.

Energy focussed companies including Siemens rank in the top ten filers as well, with other high-filing Energy companies including LG Group, Contemporary Amperex Technology Co, Ltd, Samsung Group and Signify, N. V.

The EPO reports that battery innovation has shown a huge increase in filings of 24%, perhaps linked to the increase in Transport innovation as industries focus on electric vehicle innovation.

Electrical machinery, apparatus, energy – Number of patent applications and grants (From the EPO: Link to data here.)

Healthcare and Medical Technology

Medical technology remains one of the top fields for patent filings at 15,701 filings, led by Royal Philips, Johnson & Johnson, and Medtronic Plc. While the number of filings is down by 3.0% from 2023 (consistent with other instrumentation sectors such as control instruments, down 8.1%, and  measurement instruments down 0.5%), medical innovations remains a key sector, focussing on developing new healthcare technology solutions. Innovations in diagnostics, medical imaging, and personalized treatments continue to push the boundaries of modern medicine, with patents playing an important role in protecting these advancements.

Interestingly, Biotechnology has seen again an increased number of filings following a trend over at least the last 8 years, up by 5.4% in 2024 compared with 2023. Pharmaceutical filings are down by 13.2% to 8,359; however some of the top filers are common across both sectors: Hoffman-La Roche Ltd, Sanofi SA and INSERM. Perhaps these numbers reflect a shake-up of healthcare innovation, looking to incorporate biotechnological advances alongside more traditional pharmaceuticals and MedTech in a combined multidisciplinary approach to improving healthcare.

Top 10 applicants in Biotechnology (From the EPO: Link to data here.)

Top 10 applicants in Pharmaceuticals (From the EPO: Link to data here.)

National filing trends

Of the European countries filing at the EPO, Switzerland, an active hub for biotechnological innovation, showed an increase of 3.2% in patent filings to file 9,966 applications overall.. Overall, Switzerland shows by far the highest number of applications per million inhabitants, at 1140.73, ahead of second placed Sweden at 472.24 applications per million inhabitants, along with Finland and Denmark showing a strong contribution from Scandinavia.

In terms of absolute filing numbers, EPO member states filed over 86,000 applications in 2024 (of which over 25,000 were filed by Germany and almost 11,000 by France and almost 10,000 by Switzerland), followed by the USA with over 47,500 filings, Japan with over 21,000, China with over 20,000 and the Republic of Korea with over 13,000 filings.

The UK also showed an increase of 3.1% in filings to reach 6,076 filings in 2024, with Ireland increasing filings by 4.4% to 1, 118 applications.

More data can be found on the EPO site here.

The Importance of Patents for Businesses

The sustained demand for patents underscores their critical role in supporting business growth, securing investments, and fostering technological progress. In AI-driven innovation and medical technology, where research and development (R&D) costs are high, patents provide companies with the necessary protection to commercialize their innovations and remain competitive.

The EPO’s data also suggests that Europe continues to be a hub for technological advancement, with companies and research institutions actively filing patents to safeguard their intellectual property. The ability to secure strong patent protection is essential for businesses looking to expand into new markets and establish themselves as leaders in these rapidly evolving fields.

Conclusion

The EPO’s latest report reinforces the importance of intellectual property in driving innovation, particularly in “hot topic” sectors such as Energy and Computer Technology. As these industries continue to grow, businesses must ensure they have a robust patent strategy to protect their inventions, attract investment, and maintain a competitive edge. With European innovation showing resilience, patents remain a key pillar in securing the future of technological progress.

This article was prepared by Patent Director Janine Swarbrick.

References

“European innovation remains robust, with demand for patents sustained at a high level”, published 25 March 2025, (Link to data here.)

EPO Statistics & Trends Centre: (Link to data here.)