OHIO INVENTIONINDEX | APRIL 2025

April 2025: 1.75% (B- grade)

Ohio inventionINDEX April 2025: 1.75% (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).

Six-Month Analysis of Ohio’s inventionINDEX Score

The Ohio inventionINDEX over the last six months reveals a fluctuating trend, with values ranging from a low of 0.89% in November 2024 to a high of 2.54% in December 2024. The average score for this period stands at 1.72%, slightly below the previous six-month average of 2.41%, indicating a moderate slowdown in inventive activity or innovation-driven growth. April 2025’s score of 1.75% represents a slight recovery from March’s 0.91%, suggesting a rebound in innovation efforts across the state.

Higher inventionINDEX scores often correlate with a more dynamic innovation ecosystem. December’s 2.54% score and February’s 2.23% suggest periods of strong intellectual property filings, research activity, and technology commercialization, which can drive job creation, investment attraction, and long-term economic resilience. Sustained high scores may also indicate successful public-private partnerships and effective state innovation policies.

Conversely, lower scores like those in November and March point to potential challenges, such as decreased R&D funding, reduced patent filings, or broader economic uncertainty. These dips can signal caution for stakeholders relying on innovation metrics for investment or policy decisions. While short-term declines are not uncommon, sustained low performance may hinder Ohio’s competitiveness in national and global innovation landscapes.

Discussion:

In April, the Ohio inventionINDEX scored a positive sentiment which was lower than the previous year’s average but outperformed the downward trend for the year. This is similar to the prior 12 months, which experienced a slight downward 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.

Swanson Reed’s Ohio office provides R&D tax credit consulting and advisory services to Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Toledo, Akron, Dayton, Parma, Canton, Youngstown, Lorain, Hamilton, Springfield, Kettering, Elyria, Lakewood, Cuyahoga Falls, Middletown, Euclid, Newark and Mansfield.

Feel free to book a quick teleconference with one of R&D tax specialists at a time that is convenient for you, if you would like to learn more about R&D tax credit opportunities.

Who We Are:

Swanson Reed is the largest Specialist R&D tax credit advisory firm in the United States. With offices nationwide, we are one of the only firms globally to exclusively provide R&D tax credit consulting services to our clients. We have been exclusively providing R&D tax credit claim preparation and audit compliance solutions for over 30 years.

Swanson Reed hosts daily free webinars and provides free IRS CE and CPE credits for CPAs.  For more information please visit us at www.swansonreed.com/free-webinars or contact your usual Swanson Reed representative.