The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and LexisNexis Analyze Global Patent Trends Supporting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
In a new report, “Mapping Innovations: Patents and the Sustainable Development Goals” the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) partnered with LexisNexis to reveal the industries, technologies and companies leading the charge for sustainable innovation.
NEW YORK, April 9, 2024 – LexisNexis® Legal & Professional, a leading global provider of information and analytics, today announced its collaboration with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) on a new report titled “Mapping Innovations: Patents and the Sustainable Development Goals.”
The report analyzes global patent trends mapped to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It was launched by WIPO today, ahead of World IP Day on April 26th, which is themed “IP and the SDGs: Building our common future with innovation and creativity.”
LexisNexis® Intellectual Property Solutions, as the only patent data provider linking global patent data with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, has identified 100 distinct sustainable technology categories spanning renewable energy, transportation, agriculture, medical devices and more. The report provides a comprehensive overview of the role of innovations and intellectual property in promoting sustainable development globally across various sectors.
By leveraging comprehensive LexisNexis global patent data and its patent analytics suite LexisNexis® PatentSight+™, the authors conducted extensive patent research and data analysis examining patenting activity and trends related to key SDGs. To identify areas of specialization and inform strategic decision making, the experts matched those to WIPO’s comprehensive technology concordance consisting of 35 technology fields grouped into 5 technology sectors.
“We are honored to collaborate with WIPO on this significant report demonstrating the crucial role of patents and IP in enabling innovations for global sustainability,” said Marco Richter, Head of Global Customer Success, LexisNexis® Intellectual Property Solutions. “Our goal was to create a patent mapping methodology that provides tangible insights into how emerging technologies can accelerate progress on the UN’s 2030 sustainable development agenda and which corporations and academic institutions are at the forefront of driving this progress.”
Some key findings from the report include:
- 13 out of 17 SDGs are represented within global patent data, with SDG 9 ‘Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure,’ containing the highest volume of patents. This reflects the expansive scope and diverse technology landscape encompassed within this goal.
- SDGs focused on climate action and clean energy (SDG 13 and 7) exhibit the highest growth rates in recent years, highlighting increasing attention to environmental sustainability.
- Chemistry and Instruments are the technology sectors with the most significant share of SDG-relevant patents, driven by pharmaceutical and medical device innovation.
- Environmental technologies strongly align with SDGs on clean water, sanitation and responsible production (SDG 6 and 12).
- China has seen exponential growth in SDG-related patents, though its share is still below the global average.
- Academic institutions play a major role in SDG innovation across regions, with the University of California leading for much of the past two decades before being overtaken recently by the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
Leveraging the LexisNexis Ultimate Owner concept, which assigns every patent to its highest controlling legal entity, the report also provides a view of the top 25 leading entities driving SDG-related innovation in key global markets.
Top 3 companies per region with the leading count of SDG-related patents
| Region | Japan | USA | Korea | China | Europe |
| Top 1 | Toyota Motor | GE | Samsung | Huawei | Bosch |
| Top 2 | Panasonic | Ford | Hyundai Motor | BOE | VW Group |
| Top 3 | Honda Motor | Qualcomm | LG Chem | Chinese Academy of Sciences |
Siemens |
“The report provides data-driven insights that we hope will inform discussions on how intellectual property can serve as an important catalyst to promote innovation and collaboration to achieve the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals,” said Andrew Czajkowski, Director of Technology and Innovation Support at WIPO.
The full report can be accessed via: https://staging.lexisnexisip.com/sdg
Which companies have the most SDG-related patents?
About LexisNexis® Legal & Professional
LexisNexis® Legal & Professional provides legal, regulatory, and business information and analytics that help customers increase their productivity, improve decision-making, achieve better outcomes, and advance the rule of law around the world. As a digital pioneer, the company was the first to bring legal and business information online with its Lexis® and Nexis® services. LexisNexis Legal & Professional, which serves customers in more than 150 countries with 11,800 employees worldwide, is part of RELX, a global provider of information-based analytics and decision tools for professional and business customers.
About LexisNexis® Intellectual Property Solutions
LexisNexis® Intellectual Property Solutions bring clarity to innovation for businesses worldwide. We enable innovators to accomplish more by helping them make informed decisions, be more productive, comply with regulations, and ultimately achieve competitive advantage for their business. Our broad suite of workflow and analytics solutions (LexisNexis® PatentSight+™, LexisNexis Cipher™, LexisNexis® IPlytics™, LexisNexis PatentOptimizer®, LexisNexis PatentAdvisor®, and LexisNexis TotalPatent One®, LexisNexis® IP DataDirect), enables companies to be more efficient and effective at bringing meaningful innovations to our world. We are proud to directly support and serve these innovators in their endeavors to better humankind.
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