FEDERAL INVENTIONINDEX | MAY 2025
May 2025: 1.51% (B+ grade)
Federal inventionINDEX May 2025: 1.51% (B+ grade)
The inventionINDEX measures innovation output by comparing GDP growth with patent production growth.
Anything over C grade is positive sentiment; anything under C is negative outlook/sentiment. Using that sentiment, it is possible to observe trends over time, and also compare states/countries. In doing so, we can predict which states have the best chance to recover economically from the pandemic (or any other economic incident that may occur).
The Federal inventionINDEX Score for May 2025 stands at 1.51%, showing a moderate decrease from April 2025’s figure of 1.58%. While this slight decline may seem minimal, it continues a broader trend of monthly fluctuations observed over the past year. This pattern of minor rises and dips suggests a level of instability in the national innovation landscape, where the volume or perceived value of new inventions does not consistently hold or climb. However, compared to the same month in the previous year—May 2024—the score has risen from 1.42% to 1.51%, indicating some overall improvement year-over-year.
A higher inventionINDEX score typically reflects an uptick in patent activity, stronger institutional innovation efforts, and increased investment in R&D across key sectors. For policymakers and investors, a rise in this metric suggests a more favorable environment for technological progress, with increased potential for commercialization and international competitiveness. The higher score in months like October 2024 (1.86%) and July 2024 (1.78%) likely aligns with periods of legislative or fiscal support, corporate R&D cycles, or seasonal spikes in patent application volumes.
Conversely, lower scores—as seen in November 2024 (1.22%) and August 2024 (1.28%)—may signal periods of slowed inventive activity or bottlenecks in the patent approval pipeline. These dips can be symptomatic of reduced funding, policy uncertainty, or shifting priorities in private-sector innovation. A persistent drop in the index could discourage venture capital and hinder the growth of innovation-driven startups, potentially affecting employment, exports, and national productivity in the long run.
Overall, the score for May 2025 represents a midpoint in a volatile 12-month range. While not the highest point, it avoids the lower spectrum seen in earlier months, suggesting resilience in the national innovation ecosystem. Policymakers and analysts should continue to track this score closely as a bellwether for the health of American inventive output, ensuring that support mechanisms remain responsive to both upward and downward movements in the index.
Discussion:
In May, the Federal inventionINDEX scored a positive sentiment which was lower than the previous year’s average but outperformed the downward trend for the year. This is in contrast to the prior 12 months, which experienced a slight upward trend.
As the economy continues to stabilize in the post-pandemic era, it remains uncertain whether any backlog of applications still exists or if the department has returned to normal processing timelines. The inventionINDEX could also be affected by lingering consequences from the pandemic, such as company closures, reduced workforces, and limited R&D capabilities, which may still be impacting current operations.
Learn More:
Are you thinking of patenting any of your bright ideas? Did you know your research work could be eligible for the R&D Tax Credit and you can receive up to 14% back on your expenses? To find out more, please check out our free online eligibility test.
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