— Patent filings from China almost doubles the sum of US in 2022
— Top players like Baidu, Alibaba race to monetize AI products
China is increasing its lead over the US in AI patent filings, underscoring the Asian nation’s determination to shape and influence a technology that could have broad implications for the world’s richest economies.
Chinese institutions applied for 29,853 AI-related patents in 2022, climbing from 29,000 the year prior, according to data that the World Intellectual Property Organization provided to Bloomberg News. That’s almost 80% more than US filings, which shrank 5.5%. Overall, China accounted for more than 40% of global AI applications over the past year, the data from the United Nations-affiliated agency showed. Japan and South Korea rounded out the 2022 leaders, with a combined 16,700 applications.
R&D Drive
Patent applications for AI-related inventions
World Intellectual Property Organization
Data are subject to revision
The numbers illustrate how Beijing has pushed Chinese companies and agencies to gain an edge in areas such as chipmaking, space exploration and military sciences. More recently, President Xi Jinping has ordered the nation to accelerate fundamental research in response to US efforts to curtail its access to advanced technologies. That’s triggered a flood of investment by Chinese companies in AI and quantum computing.
Baidu Inc. is now vying with Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Tencent Holdings Ltd. as well as startups such as Baichuan and Zhipu to develop a local answer to US rival OpenAI’s groundbreaking generative AI chatbot ChatGPT.
China is Leading the World in AI Patents Filing
It overtook the US in 2017 and has widened the gap since
Source: WIPO
Academics close to decision-makers in Beijing have argued that building an arsenal of patents is one of the most effective ways to counter Washington’s campaign of restrictions. Not all patent filings result in real-world inventions, but Chinese firms such as Huawei Technologies Co. have established a track record of leading innovation in the past in sectors such as networking, supercomputing and image recognition.
China surpassed the US in the number of AI filings as far back as 2017, when local firms accelerated the use of algorithms in an array of businesses from car-hailing to online shopping.
— With assistance by Thomas Pfeiffer and Yuan Gao
— Techmeme