Jony Ive Has Double the Patents of Thomas Edison

Thomas Edison (1847-1931) was a brilliant inventor -- bringing the phonograph, the motion picture camera, the practical electric light bulb, and even the alkaline battery into the world. Edison was just 22 when he received his first patent and would go on to eventually hold over 2,332 patents to his name by the time he passed away at the age of 84. Edison was so productive that he promised "a minor invention every ten days and a big thing every six months or so."

According to a profile on Jony Ive, where it was first reported that Jony Ive would be promoted to a new Chief Design role, Jony Ive has his name on 5,000 design and utility patents.

"Ive's inventiveness can perhaps most starkly be expressed by revealing that he has nearly 5,000 patents to his name," Stephen Fry wrote.


While Ive's massive patent portfolio is impressive, but it's important to note that Ive and Edison worked and lived in a century apart with a different 'inventing landscape'. Ive has worked on almost everything at Apple including designing the iPod, iMac, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and more.

Ive is just 48 years old and if he plans to stay at Apple for years to come, he has decades left of inventing left in him -- especially with some of the interesting projects Apple has been researching.

via BI