The University of California has once again nabbed the top spot in a nationwide ranking of schools with the most utility patents. The second annual list, published last week by the National Academy of Inventors, highlights the leading role of U.S. universities in driving innovation and entrepreneurship.
The U.S. Patent and Trade Office granted UC inventors 546 utility patents in 2023. These patents protect brilliant innovations in fields that drive California’s economy and quality of life, including medicine, clean energy, agriculture and consumer tech.
National Academy of Inventors rank of U.S. universities for patents in 2023
| University | Rank | Number of patents |
|---|---|---|
| University of California | 1 | 546 |
| MIT | 2 | 368 |
| University of Texas | 3 | 235 |
| Purdue University | 4 | 201 |
| Stanford University | 5 | 199 |
One such patent went to Joe Wang, a professor of engineering at UC San Diego. With two of his lab members, Farshad Tehrani and Hazhir Teymourian, Wang invented a wearable patch called AquilX that can detect and analyze the chemical composition of bodily fluids. Tehrani’s mom has diabetes, and Tehrani set out to invent something that would enable her to monitor her blood sugar without the pain of daily blood draws. The patch, which is about the size of a quarter, uses incredibly tiny needles to poke into, but not through, the skin. Its needles go just deep enough to reach the fluid between cells, but not so deep that they hit nerve endings and cause pain.
Utility patents are one of the three types of patents the federal government grants, alongside design patents and plant patents. They cover new or improved processes, machines, products or “compositions of matter.” All three patent types prevent anyone else from making, using or selling the holder’s invention. By protecting an inventor’s ability to make money from their work, patents incentivize innovation and problem solving. So maybe it’s no surprise that the University of California, the world’s premiere public research university, has rights to over 13,700 active patents in the U.S. and abroad — more than any other university in the world.
UC inventors partner with the UC technology commercialization program to take their ideas from the lab to the market. IP experts at every campus build connections with industry leaders, help researchers file for patents and negotiate licenses. The links UC staff form with relevant industries benefit the entire UC community: these relationships bring in revenue from royalties and fees that helps the university further its mission, and they encourage entrepreneurial ecosystem on the campuses.
“The University of California’s dominance on this year’s ranking from the National Academy of Inventors reflects our rich culture of innovation for global impact,” says UC Vice President for Research & Innovation Theresa Maldonado. “Our leadership today is a direct result of generations of investment and support from the people of California and their elected representatives. As a good steward of the public trust, we’re proud to highlight how we transform that support into real-world solutions that benefit California and the world.”
Find out which U.S. universities made the top 100 for U.S. utility patents in 2023.
