China rises to 3rd place in European patent applications in 2025

Chinese companies and researchers filed a record 22,031 patent applications with the European Patent Office (EPO) in 2025, with China rising to third place for the first time, the EPO Technology Dashboard 2025 showed on Tuesday.

The figure marked a year-on-year increase of 9.7 percent and accounted for 10.9 percent of all applications filed at the EPO, making China the fastest-growing country among the top 10 filing countries, the office said in a press release.

Digital communication was the field with the highest number of patent applications from China. Transport and semiconductors were the fastest-growing fields for Chinese filings, with both posting year-on-year growth of more than 30 percent.

In terms of company rankings, Chinese tech giant Huawei ranked second among all companies filing patent applications at the EPO in 2025, with 4,744 applications. Chinese battery giant Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd (CATL) ranked 10th with 1,305 applications, marking the first time that two Chinese companies entered the top 10. In addition to Huawei and CATL, four other Chinese companies ranked among the top 50 applicants -- Xiaomi, ZTE, OPPO and Tencent.

Overall, a record 201,974 patent applications were filed at the EPO in 2025, up 1.4 percent from the previous year. Computer technology remained the leading field, with the report attributing the growth to a rise in patent applications related to artificial intelligence.

"The record volume of patent applications underlines Europe's innovative capacity and its appeal as a global technology market," said EPO President Antonio Campinos.