ICFO in top 10 in patent creation

This week, the European Patents Organization (EPO) published the 2023 patent index detailing the number of new patents registered in Spain last year. As the patent system promotes innovation and economic development, many look to patenting tendencies to gauge growth and resilience of the economy as well as industry trends.

Among the companies and institutions in the 2023 index’s top ten in Spain, the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) came out in first place with 80 applications across its 120 institutes, followed by Amadeus (47), Multiverse Computing S.L. (24), Tecnalia Research & Innovation Foundation and Telefónica (17 each),  Autotech Engineering and Universtat de Barcelona (16 each), EureCat and Universitat Politènica de Cataunya, (14 each), ICFO and Universidad de Valencia (13 each).

In terms of total number of successful patent applications in 2023, Spain was up by 28% over 2022, with the total number of patent applications from the metropolitan area of Barcelona, where the majority of the top patenting institutions in Spain are located, leading the way.

ICFO’s Knowledge and Technology Transfer (KTT) team plays a key role in connecting industry with exciting developments in ICFO laboratories. One of ICFO’s main goals is to maximize business opportunities arising from research being carried out at the Institute and from collaborations with industries, investors and health-care allies. With experience in both business and research, the KTT team develops business plans that are tailored to the unique needs of each company and aligned with the researched capabilities of ICFO.

ICFO’s has a strong patent portfolio managed by the KTT team.  Dr. Silvia Carrasco, ICFO KTT Director, comments, “We are mindful that we have a responsibility to facilitate the path to market of advances made by ICFOnians, whether that be through our strategic patent portfolio, collaborations with industries to develop new technologies, or the incubation of deep-tech companies like the 11 spin-offs which we have launched to date based on ICFO IP. Sometimes there is a long road from deep-tech fundamental research to societal impact, but this is an investment that is vital for society and therefore an important priority for ICFO.”