- World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Announces the Winners of the 2025 Global Awards: Celebrating Innovation and Impact Driven by Intellectual Property.
- Photos: 2025 WIPO Global Awards Ceremony. WIPO Director General Daren Tang presented the winners with their 2025 WIPO Global Awards at a ceremony held during the WIPO Assemblies in Geneva, Switzerland, from July 8 to 17, 2025. Images provided by WIPO/Emmanuel Berrod.
Geneva, Switzerland, July 24, 2025 — This year, ten small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), startups, and university spinoffs have won the WIPO Global Awards. Their innovative products include antibody therapeutics, sign-to-speech gloves, next-generation memory chips, and sustainable protein fermentation. These breakthroughs demonstrate the transformative power of intellectual property (IP) in enhancing lives, advancing technology, and fostering more sustainable communities.
Now in its fourth edition, the WIPO Global Awards recognize visionary entrepreneurs who utilize intellectual property (IP) to drive business growth while making substantial social and economic contributions. The winners this year include a diverse range of innovators addressing global challenges in health, the environment, agri-food, creative industries, and information and communications technology (ICT).
The ten winning SMEs, university spinouts, and startups were selected from over 780 applicants across 95 countries, highlighting the program’s global reach.
“This year’s awards emphasize the importance of intellectual property (IP) in addressing real-world challenges and creating new opportunities. The winners demonstrate how effectively leveraging IP can drive growth, inspire creativity, and provide solutions that benefit people globally. I extend my congratulations to them and look forward to witnessing how they continue to thrive, using IP as a crucial partner on their journey to market.”
— WIPO Director General Daren Tang
The awards were presented during a ceremony held at the WIPO headquarters in Geneva on July 11, 2025, as part of the WIPO Assemblies of Member States. During the event, the winners expressed their intentions to utilize WIPO’s support to enhance their intellectual property strategies, attract investments, and access new markets.
The winners of the WIPO Global Awards enjoy a range of benefits aimed at promoting their growth:
- Personalized one-on-one mentoring to facilitate IP commercialization, including guidance on fundraising and business development.
- Enhanced global visibility through WIPO platforms and partner networks.
- Ongoing access to WIPO resources and advisory services for effective IP management.
- Full sponsorship to attend the Awards Ceremony and related networking events in Geneva.
The 2025 WIPO Global Awards Winners
- Health:
– SME: Hummingbird Bio, Singapore, antibody therapeutics
– Startup: Glovatrix, India, sign-to-speech gloves
- Environment:
– SME: Carbfix, Iceland, CO₂ mineral storage
– Startup: Urban Inventors, Sri Lanka, anti-flood drain system
- Agri-food:
– SME: PhageLab, Chile, antibiotic alternatives for livestock farming
– Startup: Planetary, Switzerland, mycoprotein fermentation tech
- Creative industries:
– SME: ClicknClear, United Kingdom, music rights licensing
– Startup: CodeGream, Republic of Korea, 3D product showcase
- ICT (Information and Communications Technology):
– SME: Unitree Robotics, China, advanced robotics
– Startup: Quinas Technology, United Kingdom, next-gen memory chips
In a bid to further champion diversity and inclusion in innovation, the 2025 edition introduced two new special recognitions for award winners, unlocking supplementary benefits:
- Best Woman Entrepreneur 2025 – This award is presented to Edda Aradóttir, CEO of Carbfix (Iceland). It recognizes her visionary leadership and commitment to diversity, as well as her company’s effective use of intellectual property. The award is sponsored by She Loves Tech, a global accelerator for women-led startups. It includes mentorship from their CEO, as well as a speaking opportunity at their international conference.
- Best Youth Entrepreneur 2025 – awarded to Aishwarya Karnataki, CEO of Glovatrix (India). This recognition celebrates a young entrepreneur (under 35) whose purpose-driven leadership inspires others beyond her invention. Support is provided by YE! at the International Trade Centre, a global platform for young entrepreneurs, which includes tailored access to their network and enhanced international visibility.
The Global Awards program is fundamentally aligned with WIPO’s mission to cultivate a global environment where intellectual property rights drive innovation and creativity for the benefit of all stakeholders. These independent awards, conferred by a jury of experts, aim to recognize and support individuals whose competencies contribute to societal advancement and improve the quality of life for communities. Recipients of the award will receive a tailored mentorship program designed to help them utilize intellectual property to foster business growth, as well as exclusive resources to enhance their access to funding and business opportunities.
- The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that plays a critical role in supporting global innovators and creators. It ensures that their intellectual property rights are protected, facilitating the safe transition of their ideas to the marketplace and contributing to the enhancement of lives around the world.
Source: The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
— The Author is an alumnus of the WIPO Academy, Geneva, Switzerland.
CitiTimes 