China’s Generative AI Patent Activity Sees Rapid Expansion

China’s innovation ecosystem has experienced marked growth in generative AI patenting, reflecting the country’s long-term focus on technology development and coordinated policy support.

Between 2023 and 2025, China’s published generative AI patent families increased from around 14,000 to over 37,800, with more than 56,000 new GenAI patent families published in 2024 and 2025 combined. This recent output surpassed the cumulative total from 2014 to 2023, according to the World Intellectual Property Organization.

China’s share of generative AI patents among all AI-related patent families rose from 4.2% in 2017 to 6.1% in 2023, reaching 8.7% by 2025. The country’s compound annual growth rate for GenAI patent families was 64% between 2023 and 2025.

China’s approach to AI development is structured around collaboration among government, industry, and academic or research institutions, forming what is described as a ‘Triple Helix’ model. This structure has supported the emergence of leading generative AI models such as DeepSeek and MiniMax, which have resulted from sustained national strategies and investment in talent and infrastructure.

What the numbers show

• China’s GenAI patent families published rose from about 14,000 in 2023 to over 37,800 in 2025.
• More than 56,000 new GenAI patent families were published in 2024 and 2025 combined.
• China’s GenAI patent share increased to 8.7% of all AI-related patent families in 2025.
• China’s GenAI patent CAGR was 64% between 2023 and 2025.

Major patent holders in China’s generative AI sector include Tencent, Ping An, and Baidu. These companies have contributed to China’s leading position in GenAI patenting volume, as documented in the WIPO Technology SPARK report.

China’s AI innovation has also benefited from strong integration between core AI and AI-enhanced robotics patenting, with universities and public sector organizations playing a substantial role. Analysis of global AI patent applications from 1991 to 2020 shows that public research organizations and universities are frequent assignees in China, a pattern less common in other countries.

Historical data shows that China’s R&D spending grew at roughly 22% per year from 1998 to 2013, reaching about USD 190 billion in 2013. During this period, domestic invention patent applications increased nearly 23-fold, with China surpassing Japan and the United States in patent filings by 2011. Patent subsidy programs introduced across Chinese provinces between 1998 and 2007 were associated with increased patent filings and productivity gains, especially in state-owned enterprises.

China’s AI policy framework has included the 2017 State Council “Next Generation Artificial Intelligence Development Plan,” as well as earlier initiatives such as the 2006 Medium-to-Long-Term Plan for Science and Technology, the 2010 Decision on Accelerating Strategic Emerging Industries, and the 2015 Made in China 2025 policy. These measures provided coordinated state support for strategic technology sectors, including AI, and were accompanied by provincial and municipal implementation plans and funding.

Over the past two decades, China has become deeply involved in international AI research and development networks, collaborating with foreign partners, hosting U.S. corporate AI laboratories, and expanding its participation in global research efforts. The country’s STEM education scale, computing infrastructure, and alignment of investment, policy, and talent have underpinned its rapid progress in AI performance and patenting.

* This article is based on publicly available information at the time of writing.