COVID-19 Shifted Patent Applications toward Technologies That Support Working from Home
AEA Papers and Proceedings
vol. 111,
May 2021
(pp. 263-66)
Abstract
We examine the text content of US patent applications, identifying those that advance technologies in support of video conferencing, telecommuting, remote interactivity, and working from home (collectively, WFH). The share of new patent applications that advance WFH technologies more than doubles from January to September of 2020, greatly surpassing its previous peak and following an upward trajectory since the onset of the pandemic. This evidence suggests that (re)directed technical change in reaction to COVID-19 will raise the quality and efficiency of remote work, thereby reinforcing a shift to working from home even after the pandemic ends.Citation
Bloom, Nicholas, Steven J. Davis, and Yulia Zhestkova. 2021. "COVID-19 Shifted Patent Applications toward Technologies That Support Working from Home." AEA Papers and Proceedings, 111: 263-66. DOI: 10.1257/pandp.20211057Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- I12 Health Behavior
- O33 Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes
- O34 Intellectual Property and Intellectual Capital
- J22 Time Allocation and Labor Supply