UN 2025 Intellectual Property Report: China Leads in Patent Applications, Huawei Has Been First Since 2017, and the US Continues to Decline for the Fourth Year
The United Nations released a report on Friday, March 6, showing that international patent applications in digital communication technologies and semiconductors increased significantly in 2025, reflecting sustained investment in artificial intelligence. China ranked first globally with 73,718 international patent applications, an increase of 5.3% year-on-year.
The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the UN agency responsible for patents and innovation affairs, noted in its annual report that the total number of international patent applications worldwide grew by 0.7% in 2025, reaching 275,900 applications.
Among them, digital communication technology was the category with the highest number of international patent applications, growing by 6%; patent applications in the semiconductor sector also increased by 6%. These two fields saw the fastest growth among the top ten technological fields in 2025.
In 2025, China ranked first globally with 73,718 international patent applications, an increase of 5.3%. The United States came in second with 52,617 applications, a decrease of 3%, marking the fourth consecutive year of decline for the US.
Following were Japan (47,922 applications), South Korea (25,016 applications), and Germany (16,441 applications).
Chinese company Huawei has remained first since 2017
At the corporate level, Huawei continued to lead globally, being the company with the most international patent applications since 2017. In 2025, Huawei submitted 7,523 applications.
The following companies include: Samsung Electronics (4,698 applications), Qualcomm (3,227 applications), and LG Electronics (2,400 applications).
Of the top 20 companies applying for patents globally, 16 are from the information and communication technology (ICT) industry. Among the top 100 companies applying for patents, 32 are Japanese companies, 24 are Chinese, and 17 are American.
L'Oréal has been first in brand applications for five consecutive years
In terms of international trademark registration applications, the total number decreased by 1.5% in 2025, dropping to 64,150 applications.
The countries with the highest number of applications were: the United States (10,997 applications), Germany (6,106 applications), China (5,636 applications), France (4,026 applications), and the United Kingdom (3,871 applications).
At the corporate level, L'Oréal, the French cosmetics giant, maintained the top position for the fifth consecutive year, submitting a total of 274 trademark applications.
American gaming equipment company Light & Wonder rose to second place with 105 applications.
International design protection applications have seen significant growth
In terms of international protection applications for industrial designs, the number increased by 9.4% in 2025, reaching 28,588 applications.
The areas with the highest number of applications were recording and communication equipment.
The following are the rankings by country: China (5,911 applications), Germany (4,530 applications), the United States (3,882 applications), Switzerland (2,285 applications), and Italy (2,015 applications).
The report also pointed out that the growth in applications mainly came from several large companies, including Huawei, Beijing Xiaomi Mobile Software Co., Ltd., and Apple Inc.
Additionally, Procter & Gamble, Philips, and Samsung Electronics also entered the top five.
SOURCE: rfi
Original: toutiao.com/article/1858919998699528/
Disclaimer: This article represents the views of the author alone.