Study shows vital role of public research organisations in European competitiveness

The latest study from the European Patent Office (EPO) Observatory on Patents and Technology shows that patent applications from public research organisations almost doubled over the two decades from 2001 to 2020.

European public research organisations (PROs) generated almost 63 000 European patent applications between 2001 and 2020. Annual European patent applications linked to PROs increased from around 2 000 at the beginning of the period to more than 3 500 by 2020. The study also highlights a concentrated yet diverse landscape: some organisations and countries are especially active in using the European patent system, while approaches to technology transfer and collaboration differ widely.

“Public research is one of Europe’s greatest strengths. This study highlights the vital role of our public research organisations and hospitals, whose inventions boost Europe’s competitiveness,” said EPO President António Campinos. “But to unlock their full potential, we must step up collaboration and accelerate the transfer of research into real-world technologies.”

Patenting by PROs is concentrated among just a handful of dominant institutions. The study identified 250 PROs, each of which had filed at least 20 academic patent applications with the EPO between 2001 and 2020, finding that over two-thirds of all PRO filings came from the top 16 organisations alone. Leading the ranking is France’s National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) with over 10 200 European patent applications over the two decades, followed by France’s Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) and Germany’s Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft. The study shows the major role PROs play in some countries, whereas in others universities are the major actors in patenting linked to publicly-funded research (e.g. in Italy, Switzerland and the UK).

PROs are overall more involved than universities in commercialising their research

Last year, the EPO Observatory found that many university inventions were still patented by third parties – often companies or partners – rather than by the institutions themselves. This year’s study on PROs and research hospitals makes the contrast clear: while universities have only recently reached parity between “direct” patents (filed by the institution) and “indirect” ones (filed by others), PROs now file nearly seven direct patents for every indirect one. The message is clear – PROs are firmly in charge of their own intellectual property. Across all institutions based on public research, this growing ownership signals stronger technology transfer structures and a rising capacity to capture value and commercialise research results.

Europe’s research hospitals increase their patenting activity by almost 50% (2001 to 2020)

During the two decades covered by the study, European research hospitals were linked to around 17 400 European patent applications, with activity concentrated in pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, medical technologies and diagnostics. France, Germany and the United Kingdom lead the landscape, together accounting for more than half of all applications, while Assistance Publique – Hôpitaux de Paris (AP-HP) stands out as Europe’s most active research hospital.

Multi-institutional collaboration shapes national innovation landscapes, but Europe remains fragmented

The study also reveals the high degree to which universities co-operate with each other or with PROs, research hospitals, industry or SMEs, leading to a large number of jointly filed academic patent applications. The strong role of large PROs as co-applicants in France, for example, is much in evidence. It is also clear that very few of these co-operations are transnational, pointing to the persistent fragmentation of the EU’s single market when it comes to research and innovation. The launch of the Unitary Patent in June 2023 marked a concrete step towards addressing this issue, complementing other European initiatives to promote industry-academia collaboration and provide financial support for science-based startups.

Improved insights into investment-ready startups and spin-outs from universities, PROs and hospitals

The study shows that around 2 800 European startups linked to public research attract a particularly high share of investment, helping to advance capital-intensive technologies in fields such as healthtech, energy, or hardware. To coincide with the launch of the study, the EPO’s free Deep Tech Finder has been expanded to include European PROs with pending or granted European patents. This tool helps to connect investors with some of Europe’s most promising startups. It now contains the business profiles and patent portfolios of over 10 400 such investment-ready startups. The tool makes it easy to filter startups by growth stage, industry sector or technical field, as well as enabling searches by name of startup, university or investor.

Join the discussion, live at today’s free online event

The EPO’s Observatory on Patents and Technology is hosting a free live event to discuss the findings of the study and introduce the latest features of the Deep Tech Finder. Tune into the online event, Public research organisations and innovation in Europe, for a panel debate with key experts from the European Association of Research and Technology Organisations (EARTO), CNRS, Max Planck, and more on the latest trends in the commercialisation of inventions developed at PROs.

Collaboration with national patent offices

This study, the update of the Deep Tech Finder, and the online launch event are part of a series of initiatives that the EPO Observatory has undertaken in collaboration with national patent offices. For the current project, experts from 24 national patent offices—including those of Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czechia, Germany, Estonia, Spain, Finland, France, Greece, Croatia, Italy, Luxembourg, Latvia, Monaco, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Slovakia, Türkiye, United Kingdom—have contributed valuable national and local insights, data and outreach support. The EPO Observatory will continue, in collaboration with national patent offices, to explore topics on technology transfer and innovation actors, following our recently published Biennial Workplan for 2026-27.