China toppled the US from the throne of the most innovative country in the world

China became the greatest innovative in the world, as it is the first country in terms of the number of active patents and the constant increase in the number of applications for the protection of their intellectual property rights, confirmed the global body that manages this activity.

Intellectual Property Offices China received 1.59 million patent applications in 2021, more than half of the 3.4 million applications filed worldwide in the same year. The total for China is the sum of the following twelve offices, ranked second through thirteenth.

USAthe country that had traditionally been the most innovative for decades fell into second place and filed less than a third of patent applications (591,473) for China. They are followed by Japan, South Korea and the European Patent Office in terms of innovation capacity.

According to figures released today by the World Intellectual Property Office (WIPO), the top five in the Innovation Potential Index account for 85% of the world’s total.

In Europe, it was confirmed that Germany – an innovator par excellence – has lost momentum, with 3.9% fewer patent applications filed in 2021 compared to the previous year.

The reason, according to body analysts, is that Germany It has an industrial structure based on engineering and mechanics, which were particularly affected by the global economic downturn, which favors information technology and digital communications, in which Asians are stronger.

Reason for China’s Rise

Actually the way China Having made such remarkable progress in just a decade, moving from a production model based on cheap labor to a model based on advanced technologies, leading brands and innovative developments, WIPO CEO Carsten Fink, an economist in an interview with the trade press, explained. .

“This is a challenge for many companies around the world, but I would argue that it creates healthy competition because it’s better for everyone to have more innovators, as it increases the likelihood of finding solutions to problems and productivity. increase,” he added.

WIPO data suggests that intellectual property was an area that remained strong during the acute phase of the pandemic, despite the economic and social upheaval it caused in both patent and trademark registrations.

“In general, we are seeing a boom in entrepreneurship, with many products and services entering the market and leaving their mark on trademark applications,” Fink said.

The slowdown in economic activity and lockdowns caused by the pandemic have led to the loss of millions of jobs around the world, and some of the affected people have opened businesses to make up for lost income.

The analyst acknowledged that such momentum around intellectual property is unlikely to continue in the current global economic environment, especially due to inflation and geopolitical tensions, although he was confident that innovation to be continued.

(As reported by EFE)