GM Stays in Top Spot for Auto Innovation

The Patent Board analyzes intellectual property performance across 17 industries and determines the leader in each sector based on measurements that include the number of patents, impact on the industry and technology and science strength.

“We are busy reinventing the automobile, and we’re doing it sustainably with our customers and the environment in mind,” said Alan Taub, GM vice president of R&D. “One person’s vehicle needs can be quite different from the next, so we’re creating designs for various lifestyles – building in technology that delivers a fun, safe, and efficient ride.”

GM engineers imagine what is possible and turn that vision into tangible advanced technologies that can drive the industry. A majority of its patents are tied to improving fuel economy and reducing emissions. Earlier this year, the Clean Energy Patent Growth Index of U.S. patents ranked GM No. 1 in clean-energy patents across all industries for 2010.

GM’s first patent was awarded 90 years ago. Today that number exceeds 30,000.