SASKATCHEWAN INVENTIONINDEX | JUNE 2025

June 2025: 0.83% (D+ grade)

West Virginia inventionINDEX June 2025: 0.83% (D+ grade)

The inventionINDEX measures innovation output by comparing GDP growth with patent production growth.

Anything over C grade is positive sentiment; anything under C is negative outlook/sentiment. Using that sentiment, it is possible to observe trends over time, and also compare states/countries. In doing so, we can predict which states have the best chance to recover economically from the pandemic (or any other economic incident that may occur).

Over the past 12 months, West Virginia’s inventionINDEX has displayed notable volatility, reflecting the state’s shifting momentum in innovation and intellectual property activity. The most recent score for June 2025 stands at 0.83%, a slight increase from May’s low of 0.41% but still trailing behind several higher-scoring months within the past year. The dip in May 2025 represents the lowest point in the 12-month cycle, contrasting sharply with the October 2024 peak of 2.28%, the state’s strongest performance during this period. This decline from peak to trough suggests periods of inconsistency in the state’s inventive output, which could be tied to fluctuations in research funding, commercialization activity, or institutional patent filings.

While the score has recovered slightly in June 2025, it remains below the year’s average. Several months-namely July 2024 (1.87%) and October 2024 (2.28%)-demonstrated West Virginia’s potential to reach competitive levels of invention activity. These peaks suggest moments of concentrated innovation, possibly driven by university research cycles or short-term industry initiatives. However, the inability to sustain those highs over subsequent months indicates challenges in maintaining a robust and continuous pipeline of innovation.

A higher inventionINDEX score generally correlates with a healthier innovation ecosystem, attracting investment, supporting job creation in high-tech industries, and enhancing the state’s reputation in research and development. For West Virginia, months with elevated scores may have coincided with successful patent filings, academic breakthroughs, or industrial R&D efforts. Maintaining such momentum can provide long-term benefits, including strengthened partnerships with federal agencies, increased entrepreneurial activity, and improved competitiveness in national innovation rankings.

Conversely, a lower score, such as in May 2025, raises concerns about the stability of the state’s innovation drivers. Prolonged periods of low output could indicate underinvestment in STEM education, reduced funding for research institutions, or declining engagement from private sector innovators. If such trends persist, West Virginia risks falling behind in the rapidly evolving innovation economy. Addressing these gaps may require targeted policy interventions, incentives for IP generation, and expanded support for early-stage technologies and startups.

Discussion:

In June, the West Virginia inventionINDEX scored a negative sentiment which was lower than the previous year’s average but outperformed the downward trend for the year. This is in contrast to the prior 12 months, which experienced an upward trend.

As the economy continues to stabilize in the post-pandemic era, it remains uncertain whether any backlog of applications still exists or if the department has returned to normal processing timelines. The inventionINDEX could also be affected by lingering consequences from the pandemic, such as company closures, reduced workforces, and limited R&D capabilities, which may still be impacting current operations.

Learn More:

Are you thinking of patenting any of your bright ideas? Did you know your research work could be eligible for the R&D Tax Credit and you can receive up to 14% back on your expenses? To find out more, please check out our free online eligibility test.

Swanson Reed’s West Virginia office provides R&D tax credit consulting and advisory services to Charleston, Huntington, Morgantown, Parkersburg, and Wheeling.

Feel free to book a quick teleconference with one of R&D tax specialists if you would like to learn more about R&D tax credit opportunities.

Who We Are:

Swanson Reed is the largest Specialist R&D tax credit advisory firm in the United States. With offices nationwide, we are one of the only firms globally to exclusively provide R&D tax credit consulting services to our clients. We have been exclusively providing R&D tax credit claim preparation and audit compliance solutions for over 30 years.

Swanson Reed hosts daily free webinars and provides free IRS CE and CPE credits for CPAs. For more information please visit us at www.swansonreed.com/free-webinars or contact your usual Swanson Reed representative.

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