SDG 9: Industry, Innovation & Infrastructure | SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals
Institutions: Ministry of Science & Technology
The OECD has published a study titled “Identifying Emerging AI Technologies Using Patent Data”, which applies text mining and patent analytics to detect nascent segments of artificial intelligence innovation. The report analyses trends in filings, clusters technologies by domains (e.g. AI hardware, generative models, embeddings, federated learning) and offers early signals of which AI subfields are gaining momentum. The methodology shows how governments and stakeholders can use patent data as an indicator to guide R&D investments, policy interventions, and regulatory foresight.
For India, this approach can help policymakers anticipate which AI domains to prioritise in National AI missions, grant funding, regulation (e.g. AI safety / standards), and industry collaboration. By applying this lens to India’s patent filings, DST, DPIIT, or NITI Aayog could proactively support capabilities (e.g. generative AI, AI chips, domain-specific AI). The report also helps benchmark India’s AI innovation trajectory against global peer nations.
What Are Nascent Technologies?
Nascent technologies are very early-stage innovations, often still in labs or just beginning to show up in patents, papers, or niche applications. They may not yet have products in the market, but they show strong potential to disrupt industries once scaled. Example: quantum AI algorithms or bio-inspired neural architectures.
What is Text Mining in Patent Analysis?
Text mining uses algorithms to scan the language in patent documents (titles, abstracts, claims) to detect patterns, keywords, and clusters. For AI policy, this reveals hidden sub-fields (e.g. federated learning, edge AI) before they appear in mainstream reports, helping governments and industry anticipate technological shifts.
Why Patent Analytics Matter for AI Policy
Patent data provides early signals of innovation trends, showing where companies and researchers are filing for protection. Analysing patents helps policymakers identify emerging technologies, benchmark India against peers, and channel R&D funding, regulation, and industry partnerships into high-potential areas.
Follow the full report here: OECD – Identifying Emerging AI Technologies Using Patent Data