Invention, Knowledge Transfer, and Innovation

Governments, academia, and business all contribute to the interrelated system of invention, knowledge transfer, and innovation. Patenting activities — an indicator of invention — are increasingly international, with middle-income countries increasing their share of patents granted worldwide. Trademark registrations, an indicator of innovation, dropped 9 % in 2020 after a decade of growth — a sign of the economic disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Global venture capital investment continued a trend of growth in 2020. The share of this investment to firms headquartered in the United States dropped to 47 % in 2020 from 80 % in 2000.
Source: NSF - Statistics on U.S. Science and Engineering Resources - Category: Statistics Source Type: news