Counting patents: States with the most inventive residents
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Counting patents: States with the most inventive residents
An engineer using CAD software to model a new invention.
In the U.S., those who can dream up the next best tool to improve the lives of others often can cement their names in the bedrock of history.
And that process begins with applying for a patent. A patent gives an individual or company exclusive rights to sell or profit from an invention. It also gives them grounds to sue another person or company if they believe the other party is wrongfully profiting from an idea they patented.
More than 200,000 patent applications were filed across the 50 states and Washington D.C., in the fiscal year 2022. Global patent activity fell in the second half of 2022, primarily due to the slowdown in the global economy and disruptions from COVID-19, analysts have said.
Using data from the Patent and Trademark Office and Census Bureau population estimates, ClickUp ranked the top 15 states by the number of new patents filed per capita in fiscal year 2022, which ran through the end of September.
Many states leading the race to patent inventions are also technology hubs. California, home to Silicon Valley and the heart of the tech industry, is the #1 state for patents filed in 2022. It’s the home base for massive companies such as Apple, Google, and Facebook, where multibillion-dollar research budgets buoy innovation. The state filed six times the number of patents as the next top state for overall patent applications last year.
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#15. North Carolina
An aerial view of Charlotte on a sunny day.
– New patent applications, FY2022: 6.01 patents filed per 10,000 residents
— Total new patent applications, FY2022: 6,433
— Requests for continued examination of patents, 2022: 1,878
In the past decade, North Carolina, a major base of operations for the U.S. banking industry, is a hotspot for computer hardware and software patents and other communications-related inventions. Honeywell, Bank of America, Duke University, and North Carolina State University are some of the state’s largest owners of patents.
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#14. Utah
Downtown Ogden as seen at night.
– New patent applications, FY2022: 6.25 patents filed per 10,000 residents
— Total new patent applications, FY2022: 2,114
— Requests for continued examination of patents, 2022: 669
Middle America and the Rocky Mountain regions are not known for their patent activity save for the Denver area, according to USPTO filings from the last 10 years. In Utah, though, the most popular inventions getting patented are those in the medical, surgical, and pharmaceutical drug space.
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#13. Michigan
An aerial view of downtown Deroit at dusk.
– New patent applications, FY2022: 6.66 patents filed per 10,000 residents
— Total new patent applications, FY2022: 6,680
— Requests for continued examination of patents, 2022: 1,310
The majority of patent application activity happens in the Ann Arbor region of Michigan, according to USPTO data. Pharmaceutical drug patents, PC hardware and software, and motor vehicle engines are also popular sectors for innovation. Ford, GM, and Chrysler maintain headquarters in Michigan.
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#12. New Hampshire
The skyline in downtown Manchester at dusk.
– New patent applications, FY2022: 6.79 patents filed per 10,000 residents
— Total new patent applications, FY2022: 948
— Requests for continued examination of patents, 2022: 367
New Hampshire patent applications are led by BAE Systems, a London-based defense contractor and aerospace company with a significant presence in the state. Information storage, software, and communications tech encompass the majority of patents in the state.
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#11. Connecticut
Hartford’s skyline as seen from a distance.
– New patent applications, FY2022: 7.16 patents filed per 10,000 residents
— Total new patent applications, FY2022: 2,598
— Requests for continued examination of patents, 2022: 947
Connecticut’s largest patent owners are United Technologies Corp., followed by defense contractor Raytheon Technologies and Otis Elevator Company. UTC is no longer, though its patents are still accounted for in the USPTO database. The firm merged with Raytheon in 2020.
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#10. Colorado
An aerial view of downtown Denver on a sunny day.
– New patent applications, FY2022: 7.25 patents filed per 10,000 residents
— Total new patent applications, FY2022: 4,236
— Requests for continued examination of patents, 2022: 1,168
The lion’s share of patents filed in Colorado come from the Denver and Boulder metro areas. Berkshire Hathaway-owned building materials manufacturer Johns Manville and the University of Colorado are significant owners of tech patents in the state, including in the communications space.
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#9. Washington DC
An aerial view of Washington D.C., centered on the Washington Monument.
– New patent applications, FY2022: 7.41 patents filed per 10,000 residents
— Total new patent applications, FY2022: 498
— Requests for continued examination of patents, 2022: 172
The U.S. Navy, Army, and NASA are the three largest owners of patents in the nation’s capital. The most cited patent in the state comes from Nano Resources Limited, which filed a patent to protect its method for electronic retail banking services way back in 1993, according to USPTO data.
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#8. Delaware
Wilmington as seen during late afternoon.
– New patent applications, FY2022: 7.93 patents filed per 10,000 residents
— Total new patent applications, FY2022: 808
— Requests for continued examination of patents, 2022: 231
Top inventors by patents filed in Delaware include the prolific chemical company Du Pont, wireless communication research firm InterDigital Tech Corp. and lab equipment supplier Empire Technology Development.
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#7. Minnesota
The downtown Minneapolis skyline as seen at night.
– New patent applications, FY2022: 8.09 patents filed per 10,000 residents
— Total new patent applications, FY2022: 4,626
— Requests for continued examination of patents, 2022: 1,608
Minneapolis-headquartered retailer Target Inc. is one of the largest owners of patents in Minnesota, but the medical space is the most significant area for new, patented technologies.
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#6. Vermont
Buildings lining a street in downtown Burlington.
– New patent applications, FY2022: 8.18 patents filed per 10,000 residents
— Total new patent applications, FY2022: 529
— Requests for continued examination of patents, 2022: 131
Semiconductor and drug-related patents are most common in this state, where manufacturing is the largest industry.
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#5. Oregon
Portland at sunset with a mountain in the background.
– New patent applications, FY2022: 8.19 patents filed per 10,000 residents
— Total new patent applications, FY2022: 3,471
— Requests for continued examination of patents, 2022: 1,042
Intel’s Jack Kavalieros has emerged as the most patented inventor in Portland, Oregon, over the past decade. Portland State University and Lattice Semiconductor Corp. are also top holders of patents in the state.
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#4. Washington
An aerial view of Seattle with the Space Needle in the foreground.
– New patent applications, FY2022: 10.58 patents filed per 10,000 residents
— Total new patent applications, FY2022: 8,236
— Requests for continued examination of patents, 2022: 3,207
The majority of patents in Washington tend to be filed in the Seattle area, where Amazon is the undisputed champ. The company owns more than 16,000 patents filed in the state over the past 10 years.
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#3. Idaho
Cars driving down Capitol Boulevard in Boise.
– New patent applications, FY2022: 11.00 patents filed per 10,000 residents
— Total new patent applications, FY2022: 2,133
— Requests for continued examination of patents, 2022: 438
Idaho has seen an uptick in patents filed in Boise since 2017. Semiconductor manufacturer Micron owns more patents than any other company in Boise, with more than 31,000 registered.
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#2. Massachusetts
An aerial view of downtown Boston at dusk.
– New patent applications, FY2022: 15.51 patents filed per 10,000 residents
— Total new patent applications, FY2022: 10,830
— Requests for continued examination of patents, 2022: 3,855
Massachusetts, home to Cambridge-based MIT and numerous other tech-heavy institutions, is home to some of the largest patent filers in the nation. New drug technologies make up the largest share of patents filed in Boston, and Gillette is a significant patent owner there. Patent activity in the Boston area peaked in 2020 and fell slightly in 2021.
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#1. California
A road leading into Silicon Valley.
– New patent applications, FY2022: 16.33 patents filed per 10,000 residents
— Total new patent applications, FY2022: 63,725
— Requests for continued examination of patents, 2022: 20,183
San Jose is the innovation hotspot in the Golden State, where computer software, hardware, communications devices, and semiconductors make up the most significant portion of patents filed. Cisco and Broadcom are major patent owners in San Jose. One of the most prolific and most-cited patents to emerge from Palo Alto, just a stone’s throw from San Jose, is one for multifinger touch sensing for PC and laptop mousepads owned by Logitech.
This story originally appeared on ClickUp and was produced and
distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.
