Tesla Motors is ranked as the world’s best-selling plug-in and battery electric passenger car manufacturer. It owns a market share of 16% of the plug-in segment (which includes hybrids) and 23% of the total electric segment 2020 sales.
Apart from electric cars and batteries, through its subsidiary SolarCity, Tesla develops and installs solar systems in the United States. Do read about some interesting highlights of Tesla Cybertruck, and Tesla Solar Roof portfolio.
Also, want to know which automotive companies are leading in innovation? Check out our list of the top automotive companies ranked by their patent count here
What is Tesla doing in AI?
In July 2024, Tesla advanced AI by enhancing privacy in UAV and vehicle data management, optimizing parallel processing for AI workloads, and improving cooling solutions and distance prediction for autonomous driving. Also, tesla’s innovations are widely cited by leading companies across automotive, tech, semiconductor, and telecommunications industries, including Zoox, Intel, Qualcomm, and Verizon.
Where is Tesla focused in this quarter?
| Focus Area | Potential Technologies | Related Patents |
| Ai-Driven Distance Prediction | Neural Network Models, Machine Learning Algorithms | WO2024073115A1, WO2024073033A1, WO2024073117A1, WO2024073741A1 |
| Optimizing Neural Network Execution | Neural Network Optimization, Ai Processing Frameworks | WO2024073115A1 |
| Automated Data Labeling For Navigation | Ai-Based Data Labeling, Machine Learning | WO2024073033A1 |
| Simulating Autonomous Vehicle Viewpoints | Simulation Models, Viewpoint Prediction Algorithms | WO2024073741A1 |
Uncover what Tesla is doing in AI?
How many patents does the CEO of Tesla have?
The CEO, Elon Musk, has 23 patents.
How many patents does Tesla Motors have?
Tesla has a total of 3442 patents globally. These patents belong to 1139 unique patent families. Out of 3442 patents, 2551 patents are active.
How many Tesla patents are Alive/Dead?
Worldwide Patents
What technologies are protected by Tesla Patents?
How Many Patents did Tesla File Every Year?
The drop in patent filing in recent years is because patent applications years are still in the process of being published. So, it doesn’t suggest a decrease in the patent filing.
We included all the family members to plot the filing trend. A patent family can have multiple patent documents – filed globally or in a single country – covering a single invention.
Are you wondering why there is a drop in patent filing for the last two years? It is because a patent application can take up to 18 months to get published. Certainly, it doesn’t suggest a decrease in the patent filing.
| Year of Patents Filing or Grant | Tesla Applications Filed | Tesla Patents Granted |
| 2024 | 9 | 23 |
| 2023 | 169 | 42 |
| 2022 | 273 | 56 |
| 2021 | 167 | 70 |
| 2020 | 169 | 157 |
| 2019 | 197 | 186 |
| 2018 | 360 | 208 |
| 2017 | 246 | 151 |
| 2016 | 285 | 134 |
| 2015 | 321 | 99 |
| 2014 | 161 | 114 |
| 2013 | 168 | 108 |
How Many Patents did Tesla File in Different Countries?
Countries in which Tesla Filed Patents
| Country | Patents |
| United States of America | 1556 |
| China | 289 |
| Europe (EPO) | 289 |
| Japan | 256 |
| Korea (South) | 198 |
| Hong Kong (S.A.R.) | 91 |
| Germany | 52 |
| Australia | 42 |
| Mexico | 41 |
| Canada | 39 |
| Taiwan | 29 |
| United Kingdom | 26 |
| India | 21 |
| Spain | 14 |
| Austria | 11 |
| Hungary | 11 |
| Italy | 11 |
| Poland | 11 |
| Israel | 11 |
| Brazil | 5 |
| Singapore | 5 |
| Portugal | 4 |
| Chile | 3 |
| Slovenia | 1 |
| Denmark | 1 |
| Finland | 1 |
| South Africa | 1 |
Where are Research Centres of Tesla Patents Located?
The chart below distributes patents filed by Tesla in different countries on the basis of the technology protected in patents. It also represents the markets where Tesla thinks it’s important to protect particular technology inventions.
Where are Research Centers of Tesla Located?
The exhibit below is plotted by considering the country where an invention in a patent family was introduced for the first time. In turn, this helps find the R&D centers across the globe and lets us peek into the kind of research going on in a particular country.
How R&D Direction of Tesla Changed Over the Years?
How Many Tesla Motors Patents Earlier Belonged to Other Companies?
The chart below breaks Tesla’s patents on the basis of their first owner. 48% of the patent families in Tesla’s patent portfolio are acquired and aren’t originally filed by Tesla.
10 Best Tesla Motors Patents
US7923144B2 is the most popular patent in the Tesla portfolio. It has received 575 citations so far from companies like Hyundai Motor, Gogoro and Ethicon.
Below is the list of 10 most cited patents of Tesla:
| Publication Number | Citation Count |
| US7923144B2 | 575 |
| US20090139781A1 | 322 |
| US7592537B1 | 276 |
| US20080312782A1 | 193 |
| US8109048B2 | 170 |
| US7925552B2 | 167 |
| US7698078B2 | 166 |
| WO2006048688A1 | 147 |
| US7987641B2 | 141 |
| US20080264477A1 | 129 |
How many inventions of other companies were rejected due to Tesla patents?
The statistics below share strategic R&D insights. It tells the companies that were trying to protect inventions similar to Tesla invention. They couldn’t because Tesla had protected those before them.
Examiners at the USPTO referred 705 Tesla patents in 4625 rejections (35 USC § 102 or 35 USC § 103 types).
The top citing companies in the Tesla patent portfolio are Ford, LG, and Samsung.
List of the Companies whose Patents were rejected citing Tesla –
| Company | Number of Patent Applications that faced Rejection Citing Tesla Patents | Number of Rejections (102 & 103) |
| Ford | 91 | 195 |
| LG Electronics | 77 | 215 |
| Samsung | 69 | 151 |
| Gm Global Technology | 63 | 131 |
| SunPower | 61 | 149 |
| Robert Bosch | 50 | 105 |
| Toyota | 50 | 90 |
| Hyundai Motor | 42 | 64 |
| Panasonic | 39 | 74 |
| IBM | 37 | 78 |
| Kia Motors | 27 | 41 |
| Atieva Inc | 23 | 37 |
| Audi | 21 | 51 |
| Volkswagen Group | 15 | 41 |
| Honda Motor Company | 15 | 26 |
Count of 102 and 103 Type Rejections based on Tesla Patents
Top Tesla Patents used in Rejecting Most Patent Applications
| Patent Number | Count of Rejected Applications |
| US20090139781A1 | 42 |
| US8336319B2 | 21 |
| US8686283B2 | 21 |
| US20070009787A1 | 21 |
| US8078359B2 | 20 |
| US8946547B2 | 19 |
| US8813460B2 | 18 |
| US7698078B2 | 18 |
| US8035027B2 | 16 |
| US9321362B2 | 16 |
| US7789176B2 | 15 |
| US8277965B2 | 14 |
| US20090023056A1 | 14 |
| US7923144B2 | 13 |
| US8109048B2 | 13 |
What Percentage of Tesla US Patent Applications were Granted?
Tesla (Excluding its subsidiaries) has filed 1237 patent applications at USPTO so far (Excluding Design and PCT applications). Out of these 929 have been granted leading to a grant rate of 89.33%.
Below are the key stats of Tesla’s patent prosecution at the USPTO.
Which Law Firms Filed Most US Patents for Tesla?
| Law Firm | Total Applications | Success Rate |
| Knobbe Martens Olson & Bear Llp | 705 | 94.91% |
| Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton Llp | 224 | 99.55% |
| Dla Piper Llp | 67 | 83.33% |
| Foley & Lardner Llp | 59 | 100.00% |
| Maxwell Technologies Inc | 63 | 30.39% |
| Tesla Inc (Inhouse Ip Dept) | 43 | 90.00% |
| Park Vaughan Fleming & Dowler Llp | 40 | 100.00% |
| Fitch Even Tabin & Flannery Llp | 13 | 100.00% |
| Purepulse Technologies Inc | 5 | 100.00% |
One more thing, We have converted this entire analysis into PDF form that you can download and save for later reading (or sharing with your friends). You can download it using the form below:
