Fact of the Week: The United States Developed 75 Percent of all Artificial Intelligence Patents From 2000 to 2016

October 10, 2017

Technologies enabled by artificial intelligence already contribute to the economy and benefit society in myriad ways, and further advances will be key to accelerating productivity growth and raising standards of living. This is why many countries are investing heavily in AI-related research and development—those at the forefront will be best positioned to reap the benefits.

The United States currently holds the lead in AI technologies, with U.S. businesses and universities developing 75 percent of all global patents in the field from 2000 to 2016. Examining AI patents held by businesses around the world in this period, U.S. companies occupy the top three positions: IBM holds over 1,000 AI-related patents, the most of any company, Microsoft is second with 450 patents, and Qualcomm is third with 440. Japanese companies NEC and Sony come in fourth and fifth with approximately 200 patents each.

For more about AI technologies currently deployed across the economy, see the Center for Data Innovation’s recent report, "The Promise of Artificial Intelligence: 70 Real-World Examples."

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