Data from the latest annual report published by the European Patent Office (EPO) places INESC TEC among the top three institutions in Portugal with the highest number of patent applications filed. In 2025 alone, INESC TEC submitted 14 new patent applications, 6 of which with the participation of the University of Porto. The organisation has maintained a compelling presence in the national top 10 since 2017, but the 2025 ranking marks a direct entrance into the top.
OPRIMEE – Innovation Design Engineering Solutions led Portuguese patent applications in 2025 (with 26), followed by NOS Inovação in second place, with 18.
“This performance, which has been steadily consolidating since 2017, reflects a strategy focused on transforming scientific knowledge into protected technologies, and a trajectory that has been recognised and highlighted year after year by the EPO,” explained Daniel Vasconcelos, Head of the Technology Transfer Office (TTO) at INESC TEC.
According to Daniel Vasconcelos, the applications submitted by INESC TEC in 2025 aim to protect deep tech inventions across areas like energy, robotics, medical devices, sensors, computer technology, telecommunications and augmented reality. These technologies seek, for example, to make hydrogen production more efficient and better integrated with renewable energy sources; enable hydrogen measurement in new contexts; create solutions for the non-invasive diagnosis of cardiopulmonary diseases; provide society with deep-ocean monitoring systems and support for underwater infrastructures in deep waters (including underwater cables, monitoring stations and seabed sensor networks); boost the safety of power grids; optimise the charging of electric vehicle fleets through predictive systems; and, where appropriate, enable the understanding of activity within a given space through the analysis of electromagnetic waves emitted by routers, mobile phones and other wireless devices present.
The inventions developed (for which patent applications have been filed) are highly disruptive in nature, which implies a medium-term timeframe for market availability. Six of the 14 inventions involved the participation of the University of Porto, the largest INESC TEC’ s associated. This extended timeline is due to the need for extensive testing and industrial development processes before commercialisation. Nevertheless, several of these technologies are already undergoing validation with industrial partners as part of R&D projects, both nationally and across Europe – as well as through international collaborations, notably with Johns Hopkins University.
According to the Manager of INESC TEC’s TTO, the most likely pathways for the “valorisation of these inventions generated from knowledge produced within the national science and technology system (SCTN)” will largely involve licensing to established companies capable of maximising their positive societal impact using these technologies. Alternatively, where appropriate, this may involve the creation of new companies (spin-offs), which add significant value across multiple dimensions – which INESC TEC has increasingly promoted and supported, in line with the new European strategy.
In total, Portuguese companies and inventors submitted 368 patent applications over the year, representing a 6.1% increase compared to the previous year and reaching an all-time high.
Over the past decade, European patent applications originating from Portugal have more than doubled, reflecting an increasingly dynamic innovation ecosystem in the country.
The top 10 Portuguese applicants at the EPO reflect a balanced mix of companies, universities and public research organisations, highlighting the diversity and vitality of Portugal’s innovation landscape.
At European level, the EPO received a record 201,974 patent applications last year, a 1.4% increase compared to 2024, surpassing the 200,000 for the first time. According to António Campinos, President of the EPO, these figures demonstrate “Europe’s capacity for innovation and its attractiveness as a global technology market”.
Technology trends
Although these inventions stem from research across a wide range of technological fields – reflecting the value of the national innovation ecosystem – the existence of trends driving progress in Portugal is clear.
Computer technology remained the leading technical field in 2025 for the fourth consecutive year, with applications continuing to grow (+2.6% compared to 2024), in line with the global trend at the EPO, where this field also led and showed progression. Health-related technologies once again accounted for three of the top five technological areas in Portugal. Medical technology also increased (+32% year-on-year), like biotechnology, with a 5% increase in 2025, bucking the general downward trend at EPO level. However, patent applications in pharmaceuticals declined by 9.5%, following slight growth in the previous year.
Other technological domains also recorded growth, including handling (which includes packaging technologies), with an increase of over 75%, albeit from a lower level; furniture/games, which grew by more than 62.5%; and transportation (including automotive technologies), which increased by over 50%.
In addition, Portugal continues to stand out as one of the countries making the greatest use of the Unitary Patent system. In 2025, 85% of all European patents granted by the EPO to Portuguese inventors were converted into Unitary Patents, corresponding to 125 patents. This represents a significant increase compared to 74.3% in 2024, placing Portugal well above both the EU average (40.7%) and the overall EPO average (28.7%).
With this performance, Portugal recorded the third highest uptake rate of the Unitary Patent among EU countries, highlighting the strong engagement of national innovation stakeholders with the new system.
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