More than half of US patents filed on artificial intelligence (AI) are held by computer and phone makers, according to new research from Stocklytics.com.

The analyst firm says that companies in this sector account for 30 028 out of the 52 841 patents granted to date – over 56% of copyrighted material.

Edith Reads, investment specialist at Stocklytics, says this high number of IPR acquisitions within the telecoms industry to linked to increased technology adoption.

“With advancements, our lives are becoming increasingly intertwined with technology,” says Reads. “This has seen a corresponding rise in the development of technological gadgets and solutions catering to the market’s needs. Developers also fight to stay ahead by churning out innovations requiring IPR protection.”

Stocklytics’ report also shows that IBM has the most AI IPR licences globally. The tech firm tops the top 10 global AI patents assignees list with 4 586 copyrighted materials. American firms take six of the top 10 positions on the list.

IBM’s US arm is leading the American charge, holding 3 364 licences – almost twice the 1 858 patents that Google’s parent company, Alphabet. Meanwhile, Microsoft follows closely with 1 747 IPRs.