UK universities file over 100 patents a year with international partners

A new report from the Russell Group, the value of the UK’s international research partnerships, includes novel analysis of international patent application data by Jisc. Data from the European Patent Office's PATSTAT database show that since 2018, UK institutions have co-filed over a hundred patent applications each year with international partners.

Bar chart showing the number of patent applications by UK higher educations institutions co-filed with international partners. 103 in 2018, 106 in 2019, 131 in 2020, 127 in 2021, 106 in 2022.

Over 30 years of data is included in our analysis showing both an increase in patent applications made by UK higher education providers overall, and an increase in the proportion that were co-filed with an international partner. In 1990, 5% of patent applications were co-filed with an international partner, rising to 12% in 2000 and 22% in 2020.

Bar chart showing the number of patent applications by UK higher educations institutions with and without international partners from 1990 to 2022. Total patent applications show an upward trend from 81 in 1990 to 609 in 2019. The latest figure was 483 total patent applications in 2022, of which 22% were co-filed with international partners, up from 12% in 2000.

UK universities co-file patent applications with both international academic partners and worldwide businesses. Over the last five years of available data we found that 43% of patent co-filings with international partners have been with overseas companies, and 36% with foreign universities.

Stacked bar chart showing the proportion of patent applications by UK higher educations institutions with international partners that were co-filed with overseas universities, overseas companies or other organisations from 2018 to 2022. Over the five years 43% were co-filed with companies, 36% with universities, and 21% with other organisations. Co-filings with international companies exceeded those with universities in each year except 2022.

The data reflect the importance of international research collaboration to UK universities. HESA data for 2023/24 showed the UK higher education sector receiving over £1.3 billion in non-UK income for research grants and contracts.

Phil Richards, chief technology officer for data at Jisc, said:

“Jisc’s new research uses sophisticated data matching techniques to highlight the international scope of innovation and research happening at UK universities. These international collaborations boost trade and commerce with countries around the world and directly benefit the UK economy. The research complements recent the data compiled by on the educational background of international leaders. Both strands demonstrate a higher education sector punching above its weight on the global stage.”

Douglas Dowell, policy manager at the Russell Group said:

"Russell Group universities work with partners all around the world, delivering more innovative research, groundbreaking inventions and foreign direct investment as a result.
"Many of our most pressing challenges are worldwide - from energy security through to transforming healthcare. Bringing UK universities' specialisms and expertise together with those of colleagues in other countries lets us tackle them together, benefiting our economy, society and planet alike.
"Consistent support for international collaborations, person-to-person exchanges and long-term relationships with global partners - notably through EU R&D programmes - will help UK universities deliver win-win partnerships."