Study names most innovative companies in the US

Analysts differ in their opinions of what makes one company more innovative than another: some analysts focus on a big leap forward with one innovative product, while others might point to a company with a long history of success in research and development.

but, Recent Research According to OnDeck research, the numbers are clear based on data from the U.S. Patent Office, which ranks American companies based on the number of patents they were granted by the federal government last year.

According to the survey results, the most innovative companies in the country are:

1. IBM

International Business Machines, better known as IBM, topped the list with 3,953 patents issued last year, the most of any U.S. company. The tech giant, which has been around since 1911, was the leading creator of U.S. patents worldwide for nearly three decades before scaling back in 2022, according to the report.

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But IBM once again regained its throne in the U.S., receiving 1,591 artificial intelligence-related patents in 2023 alone. The only company in the world that filed more patent applications in the U.S. than IBM last year was South Korea’s Samsung.

2. Qualcomm

San Diego-based Qualcomm, the world’s largest semiconductor maker, ranked second in the study with 3,886 patents, making it the only U.S. company other than IBM to file for more than 3,000 patents last year.

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CEO Cristiano Amon told Fox Business’ Liz Claman last year that the company had been able to weather pandemic-era disruptions to semiconductor production better than other large companies by innovating outside its usual areas of expertise.

3. Alphabet

Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google and Alphabet (Photo by Christoph Söder/picture alliance via Getty Images / Getty Images)

The parent company of search engine giant Google is leaning heavily into AI, ranking third on the list with 2,579 patents in 2023.

The tech giant unveiled its advanced AI model, Gemini, late last year. The new tool had some difficulties getting rolled out as the image-generating tool initially tended to not show white people, but Google appears to be back on track.

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Last month, the company announced its first-ever dividend, and as its stock price soared to an all-time high, CEO Sundar Pichai doubled down on its commitment to pushing AI across the company’s business.

4. Apple

Apple was named the fourth most innovative company in the United States in a recent OnDeck analysis. (REUTERS/Brendan McDiarmid/File Photo/Reuters Photo)

In terms of the number of patents filed in the United States in 2023, Apple will come in fourth with 2,568, closely followed by Alphabet.

The iPhone maker has become known for consistent innovation and improvements to its products, and this month the company unveiled updated iPad Pro and Air models at its “Let Loose” event.

5. Micron

Chipmaker Micron Technology was awarded 2,267 new patents in 2023, ranking fifth on the list of most innovative U.S. companies.

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In 2021, Micron announced that it would invest $150 billion in memory manufacturing, research and development over the next decade, and spend approximately $3 billion per year on research and development worldwide.

FOX Business’ Kristen Altus contributed to this report.