As one of the core indicators of high-value invention patents, invention patents maintaining for over 10 years have their technical value and legal stability verified by both market examination and long-term legal protection.

1 Independent Automotive Groups

Among the top 20 independent automotive groups with invention patents maintaining for more than 10 years in China's automobile industry, BYD ranks first with 2,193 patents; Chery and BAIC Group respectively rank second and third with 2,173 and 1,027 patents, showing strong R&D capabilities. The number of patents of the top 3 automotive groups accounts for over 50% of the total number of the top 20, illustrating the high focus of industry technology resources at the top.

2 Automotive Innovation Entities

GM ranks first with nearly 3,000 invention patents in China that have been maintained for over 10 years, while Toyota and BYD rank second and third with 2,257 and 1,897 respectively.

Among the TOP20 automotive innovation entities, foreign-funded automotive enterprises and Chinese automotive companies own 10 seats each, and the former’s number of patents accounts for 65% of the total number of the TOP20.Chinese automotive enterprises are comparable with foreign-funded automotive companies on company rankings and patents volume, and the gap between the two in technological innovation and intellectual property protection has gradually narrowed.

3 Component Innovation Entities

There are 17 foreign-funded component companies among the top 20 invention patents maintaining for more than 10 years in China's automobile industry, only 3 Chinese companies, WEICHAI, SANY, and YUCHAI are shortlisted, and the top 10 are all foreign-funded component companies, showing that foreign-funded companies have significant advantages in the accumulation of intellectual property rights in the field of automobile components.

In contrast, Chinese auto parts enterprises have relatively few invention patents that have lasted for over 10 years, which may be related to the late start of China's automobile industry.

In conclusion, the Chinese automobile industry has shown a positive trend in maintaining invention patents for over 10 years. Although foreign-funded component innovation entities have an advantage in the number of patents, there has been strong competitiveness from Chinese vehicle innovation entities, which are basically comparable with foreign-funded vehicle enterprises, indicating that the Chinese automobile industry has made remarkable progress in technological innovation and intellectual property protection, especially in the field of automobile manufacturing.

From AutoIP

April 14th, 2025