The patent service 'IFI CLAIMS' has published its 2022 Top 50 US Patent Assignees (Granted Patent holders) list. The Top 50 ranking identifies 2022's most innovative companies within the US intellectual property space. Analyzing patent grants allows the public to determine which companies are actively inventing in new technology spaces.

IBM has long had a culture of invention, and for 29 years running, the company topped the list of US granted patents. That's quite a milestone. But in 2022, IBM's issued granted patents dropped by a whopping 49% as noted in ifi CLAIMS top 50 list below.  Samsung, who had been #2 for since 2013, finally rose to being the granted patent leader in 2022.  

Apple came in at #9, down 10% over 2021 and Apple supplier TSMC landed in third place.  

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While the past year marked the third straight to see declines in granted patents, since the start of the pandemic, the drop was only 1%. Looking at the top 50 list, IFI's data noted a shift from West to East. In addition to Samsung's ascendance (only due to IBM's sharp drop – see the chart below), Asian-based companies on the list earned 14% more patents than Western countries in 2022. Huawei came in at #4 and BOE Technology came in at #11.

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The Most Patents, Across Countries

Of the top 10 countries securing granted patents in the U.S., it was the U.S. leading the way making up more than half of the total in 2022, far surpassing other top inventing countries. Japan came in second, China in third, Korea in fourth and Germany in fifth place, as noted in the chart below.

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