PlainPatent

CPC technology class · G16

G16B - Bioinformatics

Bioinformatics, i.e. information and communication technology [ict] specially adapted for genetic or protein-related data processing in computational molecular biology. 6,310 US utility patents granted 2015–2025, with the leading assignees and year-by-year filing trajectory.

6,310
US patents granted
G16
Parent CPC class
20
Active assignees
+91%
5-yr velocity

The verdict

Bioinformatics ranks #227 of 670 CPC technology areas - 6,310 US patents granted since 2015, with filing up 91% over five years.

#227
of 670 CPC technology areas
6,310
US patents granted, 2015–2025
International Busines…
leading assignee (144)
+91%
filing velocity, last 5 yrs
Top assignee: International Business Machines Corporation (144 patents)

CPC subclass G16B - BIOINFORMATICS, i.e. INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR GENETIC OR PROTEIN-RELATED DATA PROCESSING IN COMPUTATIONAL MOLECULAR BIOLOGY - covers 6,310 US utility patents granted between 2015 and 2025 according to USPTO PatentsView records, within the broader CPC class G16 (INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR SPECIFIC APPLICATION FIELDS). See our CPC classification guide for how the system works.

The competitive landscape in G16B is shaped by 20 distinct companies actively filing in this space. International Business Machines Corporation leads with 144 patents, followed by Life Technologies Corporation at 113 grants and Immatics Biotechnologies Gmbh at 107.

Filing activity in G16B is up 91% over the past five years versus 2015-2019, a sharp acceleration suggesting an emerging or fast-moving technology area. All counts come directly from USPTO PatentsView and reflect US granted utility patents only.

Is G16B innovation accelerating?

US utility-patent grants per year in G16B, 2015–2025 - recent five years are up 91% versus 2015–2019.

200400600800 20152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 485

Who leads G16B?

The 12 most active assignees in BIOINFORMATICS, i.e. INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR GENETIC OR PROTEIN-RELATED DATA PROCESSING IN COMPUTATIONAL MOLECULAR BIOLOGY - wider bars mean more grants

patents

What this shows International Busines… is the most active filer in G16B, holding 144 of the 6,310 patents in this class. Concentration at the top signals how contestable this technology area is for new entrants.

Source USPTO PatentsView, granted utility patents As of 2015–2025 grant years
View data table
Top patent holders in CPC subclass G16B
Rank Company Patents in G16B
#1 Illumina, Inc. 129
#2 Life Technologies Corporation 113
#3 Immatics Biotechnologies Gmbh 107
#4 Guardant Health, Inc. 101
#5 The Board Of Trustees Of The Leland Stanford Junior University 87
#6 Heartflow, Inc. 86
#7 23andme, Inc. 77
#8 The Chinese University Of Hong Kong 74
#9 Seven Bridges Genomics Inc. 60
#10 Ubiome, Inc. 58
#11 Natera, Inc. 56
#12 The Broad Institute, Inc. 44
#13 Sequenom, Inc. 42
#14 Nant Holdings IP, Llc 37
#15 10x Genomics, Inc. 37
#16 KPN Innovations Llc 36
#17 Ancestry.com DNA, Llc 36
#18 Grail, Inc. 35
#19 Personalis, Inc. 34
#20 Verinata Health, Inc. 33

About This Class

CPC subclass G16B belongs to class G16.

6,310 patents were granted in this class between 2015 and 2025.

20 companies actively patent in this space.

Classification System

Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) is a hierarchical patent classification system used by the USPTO and EPO.

← All Technology Classes Technology Rankings →

Footprint here vs. claim strategy

Each dot is a leading G16B assignee, placed by how many patents it holds in this class (horizontal) against its company-wide average claims per patent (vertical) - a read on whether the class is led by broad-but-shallow filers or focused deep-claim players.

Top 14 G16B assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in G16B. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes).

Top 14 G16B assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in G16B. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes). Scatter plot of 14 data points (bubble-sized by third dimension). 1015202530 050100150 Patents in G16B Avg claims / patent (company-wide) IlluminaLifeImmatics Biotechnolog…Guardant HealthThe Board of Trustees…Heartflow23andmeThe Chinese Universit…Seven Bridges GenomicsubiomeNateraThe Broad InstituteSequenomNant Holdings Ip
Top 14 G16B assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in G16B. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes).

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CPC class G16B?
CPC subclass G16B covers BIOINFORMATICS, i.e. INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR GENETIC OR PROTEIN-RELATED DATA PROCESSING IN COMPUTATIONAL MOLECULAR BIOLOGY. It belongs to CPC class G16 (INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR SPECIFIC APPLICATION FIELDS), with 6,310 US utility patents granted since 2015.
How many patents have been filed in G16B?
6,310 US utility patents were granted in CPC subclass G16B between 2015 and 2025, based on USPTO PatentsView data.
Which company holds the most patents in G16B?
International Business Machines Corporation leads G16B with 144 patents, making it the most active assignee in this technology area.
How is patent data for G16B collected?
Patent data comes from USPTO PatentsView, a public research dataset maintained by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. It covers all US granted utility patents and assigns CPC codes based on the technology described in each patent.
What is the difference between CPC class and subclass?
A CPC class (e.g., G16) is a broad technology category. Subclasses like G16B provide finer granularity within that category. PlainPatent organizes data at the subclass level (4-character codes) for the most useful view of technology domains.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Data sourced from USPTO PatentsView - official U.S. government patent data. See our methodology for computation details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainPatent Editorial

Every figure on PlainPatent is rendered directly from USPTO source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on USPTO source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.