Nasdaq
華爾街日報China Surpasses US As World's Largest Patent Filer Amid AI And Tech Push
China has surged past the U.S. to become the world's largest source of patent applications.
It now accounts for roughly 27% of all global patent applications, the highest share of any country, according to data highlighted by capital markets commentator The Kobeissi Letter.
That figure has nearly doubled over the past 11 years, reflecting the country's aggressive push into research, development, and intellectual property across sectors ranging from advanced manufacturing to artificial intelligence.
US Patent Share Slides To Multi-Decade Low
Over the same period, the U.S.'s share has dropped to about 20%, a decline of roughly 9 percentage points, marking its lowest contribution to global patent filings since at least the 1980s.
While U.S. companies continue to innovate in absolute terms, their share of worldwide filings has shrunk as other regions—led by China—have expanded more rapidly.
Germany And Japan Show Diverging Trends
Europe's largest economy has also seen its position weaken. Germany's share has fallen to around 6%, down about three points.
Japan, meanwhile, has remained relatively stable, holding near 18% of global filings and ranking as the world's third-largest patent contributor.
What The Patent Shift Signals For Global Innovation
Patent filings are widely viewed as a forward-looking indicator of technological and economic competitiveness.
Previously, "Shark Tank" investor Kevin O'Leary cautioned that slowing the rollout of AI infrastructure in the U.S. would simply push investment overseas, with China emerging as the primary beneficiary.
He has argued that while Washington remains tied up in permitting and regulatory debates, Beijing is moving swiftly to build, expand, and deploy AI capacity.
O'Leary has repeatedly warned that prolonged U.S. approval timelines are giving China an advantage in rapidly adding new data centers.
Those concerns have been echoed by Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, who has pointed out that large AI facilities can take years to come online in the U.S., while China advances much more quickly on massive infrastructure projects.
Read Next:
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
Image via Shutterstock