India’s start-up boom has produced 117 unicorns, making it the world’s third-largest tech ecosystem. But beneath the hype lies a sobering reality—the majority hold no patents at all.
This lack of intellectual property protection undermines innovation and weakens India’s competitive advantage in global markets
The two EV start-ups, Ola Electric and Ather Energy together account for almost two-thirds of all patents held by Indian unicorns.
30 June 2025
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On the other end of the spectrum are 101 unicorns with no patents at all—including well-known names like Paytm, PhonePe, Swiggy and Zomato
When it comes to private unicorns, Flipkart holds the highest number of patents and is pursuing more across areas such as supply chain, warehousing and data science
Many unicorns have applied for far more patents than they’ve received, but applications are held up by India’s notoriously sluggish patent-review system
And while India lags far behind China and the US, in 2023, it ranked among the top 10 countries in patent applications, according to the World Intellectual Property Indicators report.
However, close to 78% of patents granted in India were to foreign applicants—a sign that foreign entities still overshadow domestic innovation
Research: Rakshit Kumar and Nabodita Ganguly | Graphics: Shriya Bhatia
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