New EPO Study: The Role of European Universities in Patenting and Innovation

Joining forces with the Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research (Fraunhofer ISI), the European Patent Office (EPO) published a new study that provides the first ever comprehensive overview of the role European universities play in patenting and innovation on the European scale. The analysis reveals structural changes in universities’ approach to intellectual property (IP), as well as persistent differences between national innovation systems across Europe. It reveals both the challenges and opportunities of commercialising advanced scientific research to foster disruptive innovation in Europe. The study is based on data from over 1 200 universities and their knowledge transfer offices (KTOs) over twenty years (2000 to 2020).

European universities have become increasingly dynamic hubs of invention in recent decades. By 2019, they accounted for over 10% of patent applications to the European Patent Office (EPO), a significant rise from around 6% in 2000. This highlights the expanding role universities play in patenting and bringing inventions to market.