Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) led in invention patent filings in Taiwan for the sixth consecutive year, submitting 305 applications in the first quarter of 2025.

This underscores its commitment to technological advancement, with the company working on its 2-nanometer process set for mass production later this year after the rollout of its 3-nanometer technology in 2022.

Nanya Technology Corp. ranked second with 127 filings, followed by Delta Electronics Inc. (82), Innolux Corp. (80), and AUO Corp. (76).

Among foreign applicants, US-based Applied Materials Inc. led with 263 filings, followed by Tokyo Electron Ltd. (236), Coupang Corp. (221), and Samsung Electronics Co. (198).

A total of 17,063 patent applications were filed in Taiwan in Q1 2025, with 12,202 invention patents. Foreign applicants accounted for 53% of the total.

🔗 Source: Focus Taiwan

🧠 Food for thought

1️⃣ TSMC’s global patent dominance reflects strategic investment beyond Taiwan

TSMC’s consistent leadership in Taiwan patent filings is just one facet of a comprehensive global intellectual property strategy.

The company holds a massive portfolio of 64,937 patents as of 2021, with approximately 50% filed in the United States, demonstrating its focus on protecting innovations in key markets1.

This global approach has secured TSMC the second position in U.S. patent filings in 2024 with 3,989 patents (an 8% year-over-year increase), trailing only Samsung’s 6,377 patents2.

TSMC’s approximately $3 billion annual R&D investment has yielded particular strength in advanced chip packaging technologies, where it leads all competitors with 2,946 patents, surpassing both Samsung (2,404) and Intel (1,434)3.

These intellectual property assets help maintain TSMC’s dominant 64.9% share of the global semiconductor foundry market, a position that offers significant protection against competitors as the company rolls out advanced processes like its upcoming 2nm technology4.

2️⃣ Patent disputes reveal high-stakes intellectual property landscape

The semiconductor industry’s fierce patent competition occasionally erupts into major legal confrontations, as demonstrated by the 2019 battle between TSMC and GlobalFoundries.

In this high-profile case, GlobalFoundries initiated 19 patent infringement lawsuits against TSMC and its major customers like Apple and Google, claiming violations of 16 semiconductor manufacturing process patents5.

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