1. In 2023, the number of China's automobile patent disclosures has been in the trend of negative growth for the first time in the past 5 years, the number of invention patent authorizations continues to grow, and the quality of patents improves significantly.

The number of automobile patent disclosures in China in 2023 was 327,300, a year-on-year decrease of 9.65%; fierce market competition has accelerated the pace of high-quality innovation among enterprises, and enterprises’ patent layout of around core technologies has promoted the continuous output of high-value patents. In 2023, the number of China’s automobile invention patents authorized was 107,800, up 14.02% year-on-year, and the key technological innovation capabilities of automobile enterprises have been further improved.

2. In 2023, the technological innovation and patent layout of China’s automobile industry continued to focus on the fields of intelligent connected vehicles (ICV) and new energy vehicles (NEV).

In 2023, the automobile industry continued to focus on the development trends of electrification, intelligence, and connectivity. The fields of ICV and NEV together account for 51.65%; among them, the number of patent disclosures for ICVs increased by 9.35% year-on-year, accounting for 26.05% and surpassing NEVs for the first time, which showed a vigorous development trend; the number of patent disclosures in the field of NEVs enhanced by 1.76% year-on-year, accounting for 25.60%, maintaining a steady growth trend; except for the fields of ICVs and NEVs, the number of patent disclosures in traditional fields such as body and body accessories, and vehicle manufacturing all showed negative growth, where the number of patent disclosures in the engine field declined by over 30% year-on-year.

From Automobile Intellectual Property

January 23rd, 2024