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Run your analysis now →https://www.patsnap.com/resources/blog/rd-blog/bioinformatics-and-computational-biology-patent-landscape-patent-landscape/ · Patsnap · data cut-off 2026-08-31 · downloaded from the live page
Patent Landscape · Bioinformatics & Computational BiologyBioinformatics and Computational Biology Patents: Filing Trends and Who Holds the Claims
- Filings fell 53% from 476 in 2021 to 222 in 2024, the last year publication lag makes reliable — a real pullback, not a data gap.
- The leader holds 596 records but the ranked field is long-tailed, with the top 10 assignees together covering only 28.0% of all 9,138 records in scope.
- G16B bioinformatics classifications sit under A61K, C12N and C12Q claims, meaning most bioinformatics-flagged filings are anchored to wet-lab or therapeutic claims, not software alone.
9,138
Published Records
20%
Top-5 Share of All Records
-53%
Filing Growth 2021→2024
US
Leading Jurisdiction
Filing growth compares 2021 (476 records) with 2024 (222) — a three-year span. 2024 is the most recent year we treat as complete: publication lags filing by roughly 18 months, so 2025 onwards are still filling in and any growth rate that ends there would understate the field. Top-5 share is the combined record count of the five largest assignees divided by all 9,138 records in scope (CR5), not by the ranked leaders only.
Published byPatsnap Research··7 min readSourced from Patsnap Eureka
Overview
What this landscape covers
This landscape tracks 9,138 published records at the intersection of computational biology methods and applied molecular biology work — culture conditions, gene constructs, metabolite production, cell growth, molecular markers and sample preparation. It spans filings published between 2015 and the 2026-08-31 data cut-off, drawing on records filed with the United States, WIPO, Europe, Australia, Canada and Israel receiving offices.
The dataset mixes pure informatics claims with the biological workflows those tools are built to serve, so a single record can carry classifications spanning digital data processing, enzymes and DNA testing, and therapeutic compound activity at once. That overlap is the point: bioinformatics patents in this field rarely stand alone as software claims, they are usually bundled with a wet-lab method or a diagnostic application.
Filing volume and technology composition, 2015 to 2026
Source: Patsnap Eureka. Assignee ranking and totals. Derived from a Patsnap search on Bioinformatics & Computational Biology Patent Landscape covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-08-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.Run this in Eureka MCP
The Data
Filing trends and technology composition
Two views of the same 9,138 records: how filing volume has moved year over year, and how those records classify across IPC subclasses.
Filing trend, 2017-2026
Filings peaked at 481 in 2019 and ran near that level through 2021 (476), then declined to 222 by 2024 — a 53% drop across that three-year span. 2025 and 2026 figures are still incomplete because publication typically lags filing by around 18 months, so the most recent bars will fill in over time rather than representing a continued fall.
Technology composition by IPC subclass
C12Q (measuring and testing involving enzymes or DNA) leads at 41.6% of records, followed by C12N genetic engineering at 31.2% and A61K medicinal preparations at 29.2%. G16B, the bioinformatics-specific subclass, appears on 16.6% of records — a minority share that confirms most filings pair computational methods with a biological or therapeutic claim rather than standing alone as pure software.
Shares are the percentage of the 9,138 records in scope. A patent can carry several IPC classes, so the shares add up to more than 100%.
Source: Patsnap Eureka. Filing trend and technology composition. Derived from a Patsnap search on Bioinformatics & Computational Biology Patent Landscape covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-08-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.
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Representative and most-cited records
Representative filing
Sample Preparation Vessels, Microfluidic Circuits, and Systems and Methods for Sample Preparation, Extraction, and Analysis
ENVIROLOGIX INC.
The invention generally provides a sample preparation vessel including a flexible substrate defining at least one sealable opening adapted and configured to receive a solid sample; at least one fitting; and at least one filter adjacent to the at least one fitting, the filter adapted and configured to permit extracted fluids to exit the vessel while retaining solid particles, as well as vessels, circuits, systems, and related methods for sample preparation, extraction, and analysis.Filed by Envirologix, published 2018-10-04 as US20180282794A1.
Most-cited records in this landscape
| # | Publication no. | Patent title | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | US20110160078A1 | Digital Counting of Individual Molecules by Stochastic Attachment of Diverse Labels | 1,110 |
| 2 | WO2003000906A2 | Plant disease resistance genes | 1,058 |
| 3 | US8835358B2 | Digital counting of individual molecules by stochastic attachment of diverse labels | 744 |
| 4 | US20050043894A1 | Integrated biosensor and simulation system for diagnosis and therapy | 719 |
| 5 | WO2001075767A2 | In silico cross-over site selection | 673 |
| 6 | WO2002086443A2 | Methods of diagnosis of lung cancer, compositions and methods of screening for modulators of lung cancer | 563 |
| 7 | US20070083334A1 | Methods and systems for annotating biomolecular sequences | 557 |
| 8 | WO2014204727A1 | Functional genomics using crispr-CAS systems, compositions methods, screens and applications thereof | 541 |
| 9 | WO2015048577A2 | Crispr-related methods and compositions | 535 |
| 10 | US9290808B2 | Digital counting of individual molecules by stochastic attachment of diverse labels | 530 |
Citation counts favour older records simply because they have had more time to accumulate them; treat this table as a signal of influence within the corpus, not a ranking of current importance.
Each row carries its publication number; clicking a row searches Eureka by that number.
Source: Patsnap Eureka. Citation counts and representative records. Derived from a Patsnap search on Bioinformatics & Computational Biology Patent Landscape covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-08-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.Run this in Eureka MCP
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What the numbers mean for a filing decision
Read together, the trend and composition data point to a field that grew fast, is now shedding volume from a real peak, and remains structurally biased toward hybrid biological-computational claims rather than pure algorithms.
Filing momentum
-53%
2021 to 2024
The pullback is real, not a lag artefact
Filings dropped from 476 in 2021 to 222 in 2024 — a complete, comparable three-year window. That is a genuine contraction in new filing activity, distinct from the incomplete 2025-2026 bars, which will always look low until publication catches up.
Use 2024 as the last reliable year for trend comparisons.
Concentration
28.0%
top 10 of 9,138 records
A leader, then a long tail
The leading assignee holds 596 records, well ahead of fifth place at 219 and tenth at 129. Yet the ten most active assignees together account for only 28.0% of all 9,138 records in scope, which means most of the field's claim space sits with smaller or single-filing entrants rather than a handful of dominant portfolios.
Freedom-to-operate work should not stop at the leaders.
Class overlap
41.6% / 16.6%
C12Q vs G16B share
Bioinformatics claims ride on wet-lab claims
C12Q enzyme and DNA testing methods appear on 41.6% of records, more than double the 16.6% carrying the dedicated G16B bioinformatics classification. A computational method filed without a biological application claim is the exception here, not the rule.
Drafting a pure-software claim in this space is unusual, not impossible.
Jurisdiction spread
3,038 US
vs 1,457 WIPO, 1,447 EPO
US filings dominate the receiving-office mix
The United States receives more than twice the filings of the next-largest office, WIPO's PCT route, with Europe close behind. Australia, Canada and Israel form a smaller secondary tier, useful for tracking regional strategy but not where the bulk of contested claim space sits.
Weight FTO searches toward US prosecution history first.
Eureka AI Agent
Looking for what nobody has claimed yet?
Eureka can read the same corpus for gaps instead of for coverage: under-claimed branches adjacent to bioinformatics & computational biology patent landscape, with the prior art for and against each one.
Source: Patsnap Eureka. Co-assignee relationships and derived observations. Derived from a Patsnap search on Bioinformatics & Computational Biology Patent Landscape covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-08-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.Run this in Eureka MCP
Players
Who holds the claims, and where the field is still open
The ranked assignee list runs 100 companies deep, covering genomics platform vendors, agricultural biotech and academic institutions. The leader's 596 records outsizes the field, but the concentration figures show most of the ranking's depth sits well below the top ten.
Leader
596
records
A genomics-platform leader sets the pace
The top-ranked assignee's 596 records is more than double the fifth-place count of 219, reflecting a sustained, broad filing programme rather than a single winning application.
Recent-year momentum for several leading assignees has slowed to single digits, consistent with the 2021-2024 pullback.
Mid-tier
219 → 129
5th to 10th place
A tight mid-tier cluster
Records drop from 219 at fifth place to 129 at tenth — a narrower gap than between first and fifth, suggesting several assignees are filing at comparable, moderate volumes rather than one clear second-place challenger emerging.
Worth monitoring for consolidation via licensing or acquisition.
Collaboration
328 records
strongest co-assignee pair
Co-filing is concentrated in a few pairs
Only 10 co-assignee pairs appear in the data, but the strongest single pair spans 328 shared records, far ahead of the next pairs at 57 and 50. That points to a small number of durable institutional or licensing partnerships rather than broad cross-industry collaboration.
Academic pairs (university-to-university) appear lower in the list.
Recent-year filing momentum
| Assignee | Recent year | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc. | 1 | -93% |
| Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) | 1 | — |
| Affymetrix, Inc. | 0 | -100% |
| aTyr Pharma, Inc. | 0 | — |
| Pangu Biopharma Limited | 0 | — |
| Caris MPI, Inc. | 0 | -100% |
| Illumina, Inc. | 0 | -100% |
| The Regents of the University of California | 0 | -100% |
Source: Patsnap Eureka. Assignee-level momentum. Derived from a Patsnap search on Bioinformatics & Computational Biology Patent Landscape covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-08-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.Run this in Eureka MCP
What's Next
Where to take this analysis
The dataset points to specific next steps depending on whether you are clearing a filing, tracking a competitor, or scoping new claim territory.
Run a freedom-to-operate check beyond the leaders
With the top 10 assignees covering only 28.0% of all 9,138 records, a clearance search limited to the largest portfolios will miss most of the contested claim space.
Start an FTO search in EurekaTrack momentum, not just headline share
Several leading assignees show flat or declining recent-year filing activity; pairing the ranking with year-over-year momentum gives a truer read on who is still actively building portfolio depth.
Monitor assignee momentum in EurekaProbe the under-claimed branches directly
Sub-areas like microfluidic sample-prep and culture-condition algorithms sit below the core IPC clusters in filing density, which is where a narrowly drafted first claim has room to stand.
Explore white space in EurekaSource: Patsnap Eureka. Forward-looking reading of the same dataset. Derived from a Patsnap search on Bioinformatics & Computational Biology Patent Landscape covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-08-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.Run this in Eureka MCP
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
This landscape covers 9,138 published records filed or published between 2015 and the 2026-08-31 data cut-off, drawn from a search combining computational biology and molecular bioinformatics terms with applied biological workflow terms like culture conditions, gene constructs and sample preparation. The true figure for the broader field is larger, since this scope deliberately intersects informatics language with wet-lab application terms rather than capturing every software patent touching biology. Treat this as a bounded, defined slice rather than an exhaustive count of every bioinformatics filing worldwide.
The ranked leader holds 596 records, well ahead of the field, with fifth place at 219 and tenth at 129 records. But concentration is moderate: the top 10 assignees together account for just 28.0% of all 9,138 records in scope, meaning most of the filing activity sits outside the leading group. The ranking includes genomics platform vendors, agricultural biotechnology firms and academic institutions rather than a single dominant industry segment.
Filing volume peaked in 2019 at 481 records and held near that level through 2021 at 476, then fell to 222 by 2024 — a 53% decline across that three-year window. That 2021-to-2024 comparison uses the last two years reliably complete in the data; 2025 and 2026 figures are still artificially low because patent publication typically lags filing by about 18 months. So the honest read is a real pullback through 2024, with the most recent two years not yet telling their full story.
C12Q, covering measuring and testing methods involving enzymes and DNA, appears on 41.6% of the 9,138 records, the single largest share. C12N genetic engineering (31.2%) and A61K medicinal preparations (29.2%) follow closely, while the dedicated bioinformatics classification G16B appears on only 16.6% of records. Because a single patent can carry several IPC classes, these figures add up to more than 100% and should be read as overlapping claim coverage, not a breakdown of distinct categories.
The composition data shows dedicated bioinformatics classification G16B on just 16.6% of records against 41.6% for core enzyme/DNA testing claims, suggesting computational methods filed on their own, without a bundled biological application, remain comparatively rare. Sub-areas such as microfluidic sample-preparation hardware, culture-condition optimisation algorithms and metabolite-production pathway modelling show thinner density relative to the dominant C12Q/C12N/A61K cluster. A narrowly drafted claim in one of these branches, tied to a specific measurable workflow step, has more room to stand than a broad claim filed against the crowded core classes.
Answers are grounded in the same dataset. Derived from a Patsnap search on Bioinformatics & Computational Biology Patent Landscape covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-08-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.Run this in Eureka MCP
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Disclaimer. This page is generated from Patsnap Eureka data drawn from a limited snapshot of global patent and scientific-literature records, and is provided for general information and reference only.
Patent data carries inherent limitations: recent filings (typically the most recent 18–24 months) are under-counted due to standard publication lag; counts may be reported at either a patent-family or a patent-record basis and are not always directly comparable; classification, applicant-name, and citation data may contain errors, duplicates, or omissions; and the underlying search query defines and constrains the scope shown. As a result, the analysis may be incomplete or inaccurate and may not reflect the full technology landscape.
Nothing on this page constitutes an exhaustive prior-art, novelty, freedom-to-operate, or validity search, nor does it constitute legal, financial, investment, or professional advice, and it should not be relied upon as such. Any patent, commercial, or strategic decision should be verified independently and reviewed with qualified patent, legal, and domain professionals. Patsnap makes no warranties, express or implied, as to the accuracy, completeness, or fitness for any particular purpose of the information presented.
Machine translation. Assignee and organisation names originally recorded in Chinese, Japanese or Korean have been rendered into English by an AI translation step so that the tables stay readable. These renderings are best-effort and may not match a company's registered English name; the original name is what the underlying patent record carries, and it is what any Eureka query launched from this page uses.