Syngas Fermentation Media Patents: Who Leads, Trends 2026
- 75.9% of the field sits with five filers. 258 of 340 records in scope belong to the top five assignees, with a long tail of single- and low-filing entrants behind them.
- Filings have cooled from their 2019 peak. Output ran 36 in 2019 and the tracked three-year window shows a 45% decline from 2021 (11) to 2024 (6), the most recent complete year.
- Bioreactor and gas-conversion classes trail the core fermentation class. C12M bioreactor apparatus reaches 37.9% of records and C25B electrolytic conversion only 8.2%, well behind C12P fermentation at 99.7%.
Filing growth compares 2021 (11 records) with 2024 (6) — 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 340 records in scope (CR5), not by the ranked leaders only.
What this landscape covers
This landscape tracks 340 published records filed between 2015 and mid-2026 that combine syngas or acetogenic gas fermentation with medium-related claims: trace metal supply, vitamin dosing, redox control, nutrient limitation or sterilization. The scope is defined by IPC classes C12P7/40, C12P7/54 and C12M1/04, so it captures both the microbial conversion step and the bioreactor hardware around it, rather than gas-cleanup or syngas-generation patents filed elsewhere.
Because publication lags filing by roughly 18 months, the 2025 and 2026 counts in the trend data are still filling in and should not be read as a drop-off. The 2024 figure is the most recent year that can be treated as complete.
Filing trend and technology composition
Two views of the same 340-record set: filings by year, and the IPC subclasses those filings carry. Because a single record can carry several IPC classes, the composition shares add up to more than 100% of records.
A 2019 peak followed by a cooling three-year window
Filings rose to a peak of 36 in 2019, then eased; the tracked window shows a 45% decline from 11 filings in 2021 to 6 in 2024, the most recent year with a complete count. Read 2025 and 2026 as still-arriving data rather than a continuing fall.
Fermentation core dominates; conversion and separation are thin
C12P (fermentation and enzymatic synthesis) appears on 99.7% of records, effectively defining the set. C12N (microorganisms and genetic engineering) reaches 41.5% and C12M (bioreactor apparatus) 37.9%, while C25B (electrolytic conversion), C10L (fuels) and B01D (separation) each sit under 9% of records — signalling where claim density is far lower.
Shares are the percentage of the 340 records in scope. A patent can carry several IPC classes, so the shares add up to more than 100%.
Go deeper on Syngas Fermentation Media Optimization with Eureka
This page is one run against one query. Ask Eureka your own question about syngas fermentation media optimization and every answer comes back with the patent numbers behind it.
Try EurekaThe foundational grants and a recent filing
WO2024228166A1 — Acetogenic fermentation of carbon monoxide gas
This invention relates to acetogenic gas fermentation, specifically of carbon monoxide (CO) gas and gas mixtures containing the same, typically comprised in synthesis gas or industrial waste gasses in fluctuating quantities, using acetogens (acetogenic bacteria), such as Thermoanaerobacter kivui (T. kivui). The invention finds particular application in industrial fermentation of the gaseous C1 substrates CO and CO2, as well as H2 and any mixture thereof, in bioreactors.Filed by Circe Biotechnologie, published November 2024 — outside the cluster of assignees that otherwise dominates this landscape.
| # | Publication no. | Patent title | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | US5593886A | Clostridium stain which produces acetic acid from waste gases | 743 |
| 2 | US6136577A | Biological production of ethanol from waste gases with Clostridium ljungdahlii | 655 |
| 3 | WO1998000558A1 | Biological production of acetic acid from waste gases | 576 |
| 4 | US5807722A | Biological production of acetic acid from waste gases with Clostridium ljungdahlii | 515 |
| 5 | US6340581B1 | Biological production of products from waste gases | 407 |
| 6 | WO2017165244A1 | Microorganisms and artificial ecosystems for the production of protein, food, and useful co-products from c1 … | 116 |
| 7 | US20200140901A1 | Process for using biogenic carbon dioxide derived from non-fossil organic material | 60 |
| 8 | US20130210096A1 | Methods and Systems for the Production of Hydrocarbon Products | 59 |
| 9 | WO2015058011A1 | Improved carbon capture in fermentation | 51 |
| 10 | US20120052541A1 | Improved carbon capture in fermentation | 31 |
Ranked by citation count within the searched corpus; older grants accumulate citations simply by being available longer, so treat this as a signal of influence on the field rather than of current filing activity.
Each row carries its publication number; clicking a row searches Eureka by that number.
Put your own technology through the same analysis
Eureka on the web
When you want the answer in the next five minutes.
The agent works the prompt against patents and technical literature, citing every source.
Run your analysis now →MCP server & REST API
When it has to run inside your own pipeline.
Patent search, landscape analysis and assignee resolution as MCP tools. Drop them into any agent framework, or call REST directly.
Browse MCP servers →What the numbers mean for a filing decision
Read alongside the concentration and composition figures, the dataset points to a field with a small, entrenched core and several thinly claimed branches around it.
The core claim space is tightly held
The five leading assignees account for 258 of the 340 records in scope, with the leader alone credited with 79. New entrants filing directly against core fermentation-medium claims are filing into dense prior art held by a small group.
Filing pace has eased from its 2019 peak
Annual output peaked at 36 in 2019 and the tracked window shows an 11-to-6 decline between 2021 and 2024, the last complete year. That does not mean the underlying technology has matured — it means the easy claim space around the original strains and media formulations has largely been staked.
Hardware and hybrid-conversion claims are thin
C12M bioreactor apparatus reaches 37.9% of records, but adjacent classes covering electrolytic conversion (C25B, 8.2%), fuel derivatives (C10L, 6.5%) and separation (B01D, 5.0%) are all filed far less often than the fermentation core. These are narrower but comparatively open lanes.
Eureka can read the same corpus for gaps instead of for coverage: under-claimed branches adjacent to syngas fermentation media optimization, with the prior art for and against each one.
Who is filing, and where the gate sits
The ranking covers 58 companies returned by the data endpoint across the full 340-record set — not a top-50 or top-100 cut. A handful of names hold most of the volume, and recent-year activity has gone quiet even among the leaders.
One filer sets the baseline for freedom-to-operate
The top-ranked assignee holds 79 of the 340 records, well ahead of fifth place at 17 and tenth place at 7. Any new medium-optimization claim needs to be checked against this filer's portfolio first.
Concentration extends deep into the ranking
The top 10 assignees combine for 302 of 340 records, 88.8% of the field, leaving a genuinely long tail of low-count filers among the remaining 48 ranked companies.
Even the leaders show no filings in the latest tracked year
Several of the most active historical filers, including the leading group and named co-assignee pairs, show zero filings in the most recent year tracked. Given the 18-month publication lag, this reads as a reporting gap rather than confirmed withdrawal from the space.
| Assignee | Recent year | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| LanzaTech New Zealand Ltd | 0 | — |
| LanzaTech Inc | 0 | -100% |
| LANZATECH NZ INC | 0 | — |
| Kiverdi Inc | 0 | — |
| Coskata Inc | 0 | — |
| Jupeng Bio Inc | 0 | — |
| Bioengineering Resources Inc | 0 | — |
| INVISTA North America | 0 | — |
Where to take this analysis
The published record only shows what has cleared examination or publication so far. Two follow-ups sharpen the picture before committing R&D or filing budget.
Map claims against the top five portfolios directly
With 75.9% of records held by five assignees, a claim-by-claim comparison against those portfolios is more informative than a broader landscape read.
Run a freedom-to-operate check in EurekaTrack the under-claimed branches as they fill in
Electrolytic conversion, redox-control hardware and separation claims are thin today but publication lag means recent activity has not fully surfaced yet.
Monitor white space in EurekaCommon questions about this landscape
One assignee leads with 79 of the 340 records in scope, well ahead of the rest of the ranked group. The top five assignees together account for 258 records, 75.9% of the field, so the leading position sits alongside a small cluster of similarly focused filers rather than in isolation. Fifth place holds 17 records and tenth place holds 7, showing a sharp drop-off after the leading group before a long tail of smaller filers.
Annual filings peaked at 36 in 2019 and the tracked window shows a decline from 11 filings in 2021 to 6 in 2024, a 45% drop over that three-year span. 2024 is the most recent year that can be treated as complete, because publication typically lags filing by around 18 months, so 2025 and 2026 figures are still filling in. The honest read is a cooling from a 2019 peak rather than a currently accelerating field, but it is too early to call the trend beyond 2024.
Compared with the core fermentation classification, which appears on 99.7% of the 340 records, several adjacent classes are filed far less often: electrolytic conversion (C25B) at 8.2%, fuel derivatives (C10L) at 6.5%, and separation processes (B01D) at 5.0% of records. These lower shares point to sub-areas — such as electrolytic co-conversion, redox-control hardware and continuous-process separation — that carry comparatively little claim density relative to the fermentation-medium core.
WO2024228166A1, filed by Circe Biotechnologie and published in November 2024, covers acetogenic fermentation of carbon monoxide gas and gas mixtures such as synthesis gas or industrial waste gases, using acetogens including Thermoanaerobacter kivui, applied to C1 substrates (CO, CO2, H2) in bioreactors. It is notable in this landscape both as one of the more recent filings in scope and because the filer sits outside the small group of assignees that otherwise dominates the field's citation-heavy foundational patents.
The United States leads with 83 filings, followed by the European Patent Office at 60 and Canada at 36. WIPO PCT filings number 31, Australia 25, and Malaysia 15. This spread suggests applicants are pursuing broad international protection through PCT alongside direct filings in the largest bio-industrial markets, rather than concentrating in a single jurisdiction.
Research Syngas Fermentation Media Optimization in depth with Eureka
Go past this page: query the whole syngas fermentation media optimization corpus yourself, in your own scope.
Every answer comes back with patent numbers you can open.
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.