Predicting Innovation: High Volumes of Patent Filings Show the Challenge & Opportunity of Patent Data

Millions of patents were filed across the world in 2020, according to recent publications from global patent offices. Patents have high predictive power and are used by data scientists and investment firms to carry out key functions like portfolio analysis, research and development, and competitive intelligence. But the sheer number of filings last year and in the first quarter of 2021 shows how difficult it is for these organizations to keep on top of patent developments to generate these insights.

Although developing products and inventions in a laboratory was made more difficult by the pandemic, the pace of patent applications and grants in the last year has been staggering. For example:

Patent data is highly sought after by organizations of all stripes because of its high predictive power. This is because the average time from patent to product is between 2 and 5 years. Patent data offers invaluable insights for companies seeking to:

Alternative data and AI technologies have allowed data scientists and companies to find meaning from patent data in new and transformative ways. A recent article in the Journal of Big Data analyzed more than 13,000 patent applications over nearly three decades to understand the way in which big data analytics of patents has developed and will continue to increase in the coming years. The researchers identified many benefits of applying technology to patent data, calling it “a valuable resource for understanding the dynamics and activities of the invention ecosystem”.

Technology unpicks the meaning of patent data

Patent data clearly presents significant opportunities for companies, but the high volumes of filings last year also presents a challenge: How do you cut through the noise of millions of patent applications to find patterns, trends and predictions? The answer lies in acquiring the best possible data and using technology to reveal meaningful insights.

Companies in the market for patent data should consider the following:

Read our factsheet to learn more about flexible delivery options for patent data from Nexis® Data as a Service.