Comment: The outlook for British high-growth sectors remains strong

The European Patent Office (EPO)’s Patent Index Report 2024 shows that UK-based innovators filed 6,076 European patent applications last year, up 3.1 per cent on the previous year. This is the third consecutive increase, with the volume of European patent filings originating in the UK rising by 1.9 per cent in 2022 and 4.2 per cent in 2023. Based on an analysis of the EPO’s Top 10 filing countries, the latest data shows that UK-based innovators recorded the third highest growth, behind South Korea and Switzerland.  

Despite filing more European patent applications last year, UK-based innovators still only account for three per cent of the total number of applications made to the EPO. Most European patent applications originated in the US (24 per cent), followed by Germany (12.6 per cent), Japan (10.6 per cent) and China (10.1 per cent). There is undoubtedly room for improvement here, although the UK’s strong track record in research, development and innovation activity has not proved so easy to industrialise in the past. Significant support and funding would be needed to achieve this.   

Growth in UK innovation activity 

The EPO’s report is evidence that innovation activity in the UK has grown significantly for the third year in a row and despite the continuing economic and geopolitical uncertainty, the outlook for high-growth sectors of industry in areas such as computer technology, AI, life sciences and advanced manufacturing is strong.  

The UK has a world class research base and is home to four of the world’s top 10 universities. Year on year, these universities are responsible for a range of dynamic spinout companies that rely on intellectual property (IP) rights to optimise revenues and attract the investment needed to secure their growth plans. This focus on research, development and innovation activity, particularly in fast growth sectors, means the UK is well placed to drive industrial growth.  

A category-by-category perspective 

Close analysis of the European patent applications filed by UK-based innovators last year shows that innovation activity in certain categories of technology is growing particularly strongly. For example, in the category of ‘other consumer goods’, European patent applications originating in the UK rose by 71.7 per cent to 752 applications. ‘Computer technology’ also saw a significant increase in patent filing activity, with the volume of patent applications made to the EPO increasing by 12.4 per cent to 579 applications. Other categories of technology where UK-based innovation activity remains strong, despite a small dip in filings, include medical technology, biotechnology and transport.  

When considered on a category-by-category basis, the volume of European patent applications filed by UK-based innovators might seem small, but a European patent application is typically one member of a related family of patent applications, which means they represent a collection of applications covering the same or a similar invention. The strong growth in ‘other consumer goods’ patent applications could be linked to a surge in filing activity related to vaping technology by UK company, British American Tobacco. 

Displacing Unilever as the top UK filer, British American Tobacco filed 636 patent applications at the EPO, up from 354 in the previous year, and was the fastest growing filer in the EPO’s Top 50 list of companies that filed applications last year. Unilever was in second place with 613 patent applications from the UK, followed by Rolls-Royce, with 254 patent applications from the UK. Other top UK-based filers included BAE Systems (184), British Telecommunications (175) and Linde (173).  

From a global perspective, a total of 199,264 patent applications were made to the EPO in 2024, slightly down on the previous year. Whilst the top filing countries – the US, Germany, Japan, China and South Korea - recorded figures on a par with last year, some other countries saw a marked increase in European patent filing activity, for example Hong Kong and Norway. The geographic spread of European patent filings by origin confirms that innovation activity globally remains buoyant. 

Due to be published in June, the Government’s new industrial strategy will set out a 10-year plan, with the aim of providing the certainty and stability needed to underpin investment in high-growth sectors and boost the economy. The green paper published last November - Invest 2035 - underlines the UK’s strengths in research, development and innovation (RDI), which are essential to developing high-growth sectors, such as life sciences and advanced manufacturing. However, the green paper also highlights the need to improve ‘adoption and diffusion’. 

Based on the EPO’s Patent Index we can see that many UK-based companies and research science institutions have the backing of investors and a world-leading reputation in terms of their innovation outputs. With a new 10-year vision and the right amount of funding, the UK could builder a stronger industrial future and benefit economically. 

James Gray, partner and patent attorney at Withers & Rogers