China has more than 2 million high-quality patents

According to an announcement by the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) over the weekend, the country recorded 5.32 million valid patents by the end of 2025. Of these, there are 2.29 million high-quality patents, accounting for 43.1% of the total number of existing patents, an increase of 2.2% over last year and an average increase of 2.9% each year since 2020.

The number of high-quality patents also increased, reaching an average of 16/10,000 people/invention, exceeding the target of 12 patents set during the country’s 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025). At the end of last year, China for the first time recorded the number of valid patents exceeding 5 million, ranking first for 6 consecutive years in the number of international patent applications under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).

“This reflects a continuous increase in the proportion of patents with higher technological sophistication, greater market value and more stable intellectual property protection,” said Liang Xinxin, CNIPA representative.

CNIPA statistics show that 70% of high-quality patents focus on emerging and strategic industries. The fastest growth rates were recorded in information technology management, computer technology and medical technology, with AI-related patents of top quality on a global scale. Emerging fields such as quantum technology, biomanufacturing, brain-computer interfaces and 6th generation (6G) telecommunications networks also hold a series of important core technology patents.

Mr. Xinxin said that Chinese enterprises are the “main driving force” in the recent explosion of high-value inventions. Innovation hubs such as the Yangtze River Delta in the east, the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region in the north, and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) in the south are leading the trend, contributing 70% of China’s total high-quality patents and inventions.

On a world scale, China’s innovation capacity is also recognized. Among them, the Shenzhen – Hong Kong – Guangzhou innovation cluster in the GBA topped the 2025 Global Innovation Index of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) for the first time. Meanwhile, Beijing ranked 4th and Shanghai – Suzhou ranked 6th.

“In the next 5 years, we will guide innovation units to prioritize patent quality, develop more high-quality core patents, and contribute to the development of new production forces,” Xinxin added.