China Becomes the First Nation to Surpass 5 Million Valid Invention Patents

IT Home reported on November 29 that the National Intellectual Property Administration held its monthly press conference on November 28, outlining new progress and measures in strengthening the protection and utilization of intellectual property rights in China.

According to the briefing, China has now become the first country in the world to hold over 5 million active domestic invention patents, with PCT international patent applications ranking first globally for six consecutive years. Patent-intensive industries have generated added value of 16.87 trillion yuan, accounting for 13.04% of GDP. Among the world’s top 5,000 brands, Chinese brand value has reached 1.81 trillion USD, ranking second worldwide. Meanwhile, products tied to geographical indication rights generated nearly 970 billion yuan in direct economic value, sustaining strong growth momentum.

The World Intellectual Property Organization’s Global Innovation Index 2025 ranked China 10th, marking the country’s first entry into the global top ten. China also leads the world in the number of top-100 innovation clusters, with 24 in total, retaining first place among all nations for three consecutive years. Notably, the “Shenzhen–Hong Kong–Guangzhou” innovation cluster rose to No. 1 in the world for the first time.

China has significantly accelerated its review processes: the average examination period for invention patents is now 15 months, while trademark registrations are processed in 4 months, both ranking among the fastest globally under comparable systems. A total of 129 national IP protection and rapid-response centers have been established, and public satisfaction with IP protection has risen from 80.05 points in 2020 to 82.36 points in 2024.

China also continues to advance patent-commercialization initiatives, successfully leading many patents toward industrialization. The industrialization rate of corporate invention patents increased from 44.9% in 2020 to 53.3% in 2024. The launch of the National Intellectual Property Public Service Platform has enabled unified, streamlined processing of diverse business services. The number of national-level IP public service institutions has reached 483, with full coverage at the provincial level. Additionally, the National Intellectual Property Administration is working with Tsinghua University and Peking University to jointly establish international IP academies, accelerating the cultivation of high-end talent with expertise in global IP affairs.