""It's very interesting to see patent applications take such a dive after a long climb upward," said Lily Iacurci, Marketing Manager at IFI CLAIMS Patent Services. Iacurci noted the firm will be monitoring the data to see if a trend develops, adding, "Right now, we're wondering if other companies are quietly adopting patent strategies similar to the one IBM announced a few years ago. Are R&D departments relying more on trade secrets to protect IP? Or is it a lingering impact from COVID?""
"For the fourth straight year, Samsung Electronics secured the top spot for U.S. patent grants, receiving 7,054 patents in 2025, according to the 2025 U.S. Top 50 ranking. This marked an 11% increase for the company and represented more than 2% of all patents granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) last year. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) held second place with 4,194 patents, while Qualcomm remained third with 3,749 patents."
U.S. patent applications declined 9% in 2025 to the lowest level since 2019, while total patent grants dipped less than 1% to 323,272. A top-50 U.S. recipients ranking shows Samsung Electronics received 7,054 patents, an 11% increase and more than 2% of USPTO grants. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company held second with 4,194 patents and Qualcomm remained third with 3,749. IBM exited the top 10 for the first time in decades. Observers are weighing potential causes such as shifts to alternate IP strategies, increased reliance on trade secrets, or lingering COVID-related effects, and plan continued monitoring for trends.
Read at IPWatchdog.com | Patents & Intellectual Property Law
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]