Source: Clarivate Analytics infographic. |
Now in its sixth year, the 2016 Top 100 Global Innovators report reveals a prominent shift in strategy among the world's top innovators, Clarivate Analytics said. Notably, the volume of patents filed has decreased while grant rates have increased. That trend, combined with a significant commitment to research and development (R&D) spending, showcases an increased commitment to quality over quantity for commercialising new inventions. Together, the firms on the list generated more than US$4 trillion revenue in 2015 and spent more than US$227 billion on R&D. On average, the 2016 Top 100 Global Innovators invest 9.1% more in R&D than those in the S&P 100, underlining the importance they place on innovation.
This year's study also revealed that the path to innovation is not straight, with different top innovators investing in different technologies. Canon, General Electric and Hitachi are investing in medical devices, Google is developing a self-driving car while Amazon is actively involved in drone technology, for instance.
The Clarivate Analytics 2016 Top 100 Global Innovators methodology is the only objective analysis of patent volume, patent-grant success rates, global reach and invention influence to identify without bias the world's most innovative organisations.
Said Jay Nadler, CEO, Clarivate Analytics: "We believe the power of innovation is a fundamental driver of economic well-being, competitive advantage and success, which represents the heart of our business – to accelerate the pace of innovation. Using insights from the Web of Science, Derwent and Cortellis*, our Top 100 Global Innovators methodology is purely data-based and eliminates any ambiguity as to what makes an organisation innovative. So, we congratulate those who have made meaningful gains to usher in the next era of global innovation."
The Clarivate Analytics 2016 Top 100 Global Innovators are:
3M Company
Abbott Laboratories
Advanced Micro Devices (AMD)
Air Products
Aisin Seiki
Alstom
Amazon
Analog Devices
Apple
Arkema - a chemicals and advanced materials company
BASF
Bayer
Becton Dickinson (BD) - a medical technology company
Boeing
Boston Scientific
Bridgestone
Bristol-Myers Squibb
Broadcom
Canon
CEA - France's Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission
Chevron
CNRS, the French National Center for Scientific Research
Corning
Daikin Industries - a specialist in air conditioning and refrigeration
Delphi Automotive
Dolby Laboratories
Dow Chemical Company
DuPont
Emerson Electric
Ericsson
Exxon Mobil
Fraunhofer - a German research organisation
Fujifilm
Fujitsu
General Electric
Google (now Alphabet)
Hitachi
Honda Motor
Honeywell International
Huawei
IFP Energies Nouvelles - research and innovation, training and information for sustainable development in the fields of energy, transport and environment
Intel
InterDigital - Produces, markets, sells and licenses wireless digital radio-telephone systems for voice and data communications
Johnson & Johnson
Johnson Controls
JTEKT - an automotive components provider
Kawasaki Heavy Industries - a manufacturer of a wide range of systems, from motorcycles to ships
Kobe Steel
Komatsu - a mining and construction equipment manufacturer
Kyocera
LG Electronics
Lockheed Martin
LSIS, a smart energy provider
Makita Corporation - an industrial power tools manufacturer
Marvell
MediaTek
Medtronic, the medical technology specialist
Merck
Microsoft
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, which provides engineering, electrical and electronics solutions
NEC
Nike
Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal
Nissan Motor
Nitto Denko - a maker of tapes, vinyls, LCDs, and insulationNokia
Novartis
NTT
NXP Semiconductors
Olympus
Omron
Oracle
Panasonic
Philips
Qualcomm
Renesas Electronics
Roche
Safran - a supplier of systems and equipment for aerospace, defense and security
Saint-Gobain - a maker of high-performance materials for home and industrial use
Samsung Electronics
Seagate
Seiko Epson
Shin-Etsu Chemical
Showa Denko - a manufacturer of advanced materials for various industries
Sony
Sumitomo Electric - a cable and wire supplier
Symantec
TE Connectivity
Thales
Toshiba
Total S.A.
Toyota Motor
University of California
Valeo - focused on automotive spare parts
Xerox
Xilinx
Yamaha
Yaskawa Electric
Yazaki
Interested?
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*The Web of Science, Derwent and Cortellis are all Clarivate Analytics products. Web of Science is a scientific citation indexing service, Derwent deals with patent information and Cortellis offers pharma intelligence.