EPO study: Finland ranks 4th in Europe for academic patents per capita

A new report published by the European Patent Office (EPO) today finds that patent applications for inventions originating in European universities have been on the rise over the past two decades, and now account for 10.2% of all patents filed at the EPO by European applicants. In FInland, academic patents represent 10% of all European patent applications filed by Finnish applicants at the EPO in the period 2000-2020.

• Leading countries for academic patents are Germany, France, the UK and Italy
• Finland ranks 11th as Finnish universities are responsible for 3.1% of all academic patents in Europe
• A small group of European universities (5%) accounts for half of all academic patent applications
• Finland ranks 4th in Europe for academic patents per capita, with 619 academic patents per million people filed between 2000 and 2020

“Europe has a longstanding tradition of academic excellence, but we sometimes struggle to turn research into commercial success,” said EPO President, António Campinos. “This study sheds light on academic inventiveness across Europe to further inform policies and strategies. By leveraging patents through licensing, collaboration or spinouts, universities can amplify their impact driving both market and social value. As the recent Draghi report underscores, there is still significant work to be done to achieve a single market for research and technology in Europe, since 10% of startups with European academic patents are headquartered in the US.”

University patent ownership on the rise

European universities have substantially increased their patenting of academic inventions, with the proportion rising from 24% of all academic patent applications in 2000 to 45% in 2019, indicating a significant shift in intellectual property practice and policy.

According to the study, Germany, France, the UK, and Italy lead in total number of academic patents while Finland ranks 11th. However, Finland ranks 4th in Europe for academic patents per capita, with 619 academic patents per million people filed between 2000 and 2020.

A small number of universities in Europe (5% of the 1 200 universities in the study, including for example, the University of Grenoble Alpes, Technical University of Munich, University of Oxford, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, University of Copenhagen, and Polytechnic University of Milan, among others) account for half of all academic patent applications. They focus more on science-based fields and are supported by dedicated knowledge transfer offices. In contrast, 62% of universities contribute only 8%. But this latter group of small universities who file fewer patent applications play an important role in their national innovation ecosystems. Finland has 24 institutions that generated at least one European patent application at the EPO in the period 2000–2020.

Further information

• Read the full reportOpen link in a new tab
• Join the hybrid event on 22 October where the study’s key findings will be discussedOpen link in a new tab
• Find universities with European patents - and their spin-outs - using the EPO’s Deep Tech FindeOpen link in a new tabr

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