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UK entrepreneurship fulled by inventors

Dragon’s Den style inventors with big ideas are helping to create a nation of innovators, according to new figures released yesterday. Data from the UK Intellectual Property Office show that in the first three months of this year almost 30% of all patent applications came from individual innovators – many of them entrepreneurs looking to build a business on the back of their invention. In total, more than 1800 individuals put in an application for a patent in January, February and March of this year.

The Office said although most patent applications come from companies and research teams, applications from individuals ‘are proving to be an important part of the UK’s innovation culture’. Many applications came from entrepreneurs looking to build a business on the back of their invention, according to the Office, and the popularity of shows like Dragons’ Den means the UK can boast a large proportion of individual inventors.

Malcolm Wicks, science and innovation minister, said: “Britain remains a nation of inventors, taking their ingenuity from the garden shed to commercial success. Entrepreneurs and the passion of those who appear on shows like Dragons’ Den can really inspire innovation. “Some of the big inventions we will see later this century may be in the minds and imaginations of young children today.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .