Thematic Investing

Identifying the best companies in a technology

Fast and precise results for passive and rule-based funds

This approach produces a thematic benchmark and makes future technology-based markets investable today by selecting the best active companies. The approach is very suitable for passive and rule-based thematic funds that focus on a specific technology or a similar technology theme.

The best companies in a specific technology

The key players with the biggest high-quality patent portfolio in a specific technology. The focus is on world-class patents (top 10% patents). The approach also takes the specialization degree into account which indicates the relevancy of the technology for a company compared to total company technology activities.

Scientific foundation of the World Class Score

The world-class scoring method is based on the EconSight patent «Computer implemented method for producing a patent-data based indicator» published in 2023.

The thematic investing approach

Specific Technology or close Tech Environment

A specific technology or technological theme is defined based on the customer’s objectives. Technological proximity is important but can be handled flexibly. All patents worldwide are then identified for this topic. Time-series data for several years show dynamics of the theme or shifts between the selected technologies over time.

Calculation and Scoring

All identified patents are evaluated individually in terms of their quality and are assigned a value per year and technology based on business-relevant citations, critical-mass country coverage and legal status of the patent. The top-10% patents per technology are considered world-class and can be attributed to each company active in the technology.

Company Ranking

The ranking lists all active companies in the technology by number of world-class patents. The specialization degree is also provided. Data is produced as time-series for the last 3-5 years. Optionally, total company patents can also be provided for additional information.

BlackRock products based on the EconSight thematic investing approach

First thematic Blackrock fund powered by EconSight

The BlackRock iShares Metaverse UCITS ETF tracks the STOXX Global Metaverse Index and is the first fund to identify market leaders, innovators and specialists in the metaverse based on Econsight patent data.

EconSight has worked closely with Qontigo and Blackrock on the development of the index to identify the pioneering companies developing the Metaverse. The index relies on EconSight technologies, High Quality Patents, and Specialization Score methodology to select the top companies within the metaverse technologies. A special element of the fund is the intelligent combination of core and enabling technologies that make up the metaverse, ranging from 3D image modelling, avatars, blockchain, graphic processing units (GPU), non-fungible tokens (NFT) and virtual, augmented and extended reality – all developed by EconSight.

The index comprises 65 global companies ranging from the digital marketplace, gaming, healthcare, manufacturing, software as well as hardware and components. This incorporates companies developing interactive virtual platforms, wearables, and immersive technologies as well as those companies providing the necessary computer processing capabilities and infrastructure.

Background – what do we do new, different and better?

500 curated technologies

A technology taxonomy consisting of 500 curated cutting-edge technologies, defined from a market perspective and not from a purely technical perspective.

Next generation AI-based patent analysis

We use AI where it makes sense and leads to better results. Intelligently linked with our technologies and based on more than 20 years of expert knowledge: innovation evaluation and scoring, grant predictors, enhanced patent searches, and risk analysis.

Precise indicators

EconSight indicators are designed to get the best possible information out of patents: World Class Patents, Company Innovation Score, EconSight Patent Score, Global Tech Share, Specialisation Degree, Enabling Technology Environment, and time series data from 1990 to 2023

Business relevant patent scores

EconSight developed a technology-specific patent score that focusses on business relevancy in patent citations and “critical mass” country coverage, and specifically takes younger patents into account with AI-based grant and citation predictions.