GenAI Patent Surge: What the Global Race Means for South America's Innovation Ambitions

Global Patent Filings Rise on Digital and Semiconductor Surge — South America Watches from the Sidelines

International patent applications filed through WIPO's Patent Cooperation Treaty rose 0.7% in 2025 to 275,900 filings, driven by strong growth in digital communication and semiconductor technologies. The figures highlight a widening gap as South American innovators remain largely absent from the fields powering global IP growth.

Intellectual Property in Sports Is Booming — and South America Has a Stake in the Game

A new WIPO report released on World IP Day 2026 reveals that sports-related patents, trademarks, and designs are all growing at rates well above global averages. For South America, the findings highlight a continent-wide commercial opportunity that extends far beyond football.

Honduras Positions Itself as a Growing Hub for Regional Investment

Honduras has been advancing a series of economic and regulatory measures aimed at attracting foreign investment and strengthening its role in Central American trade. The country's strategic location, combined with ongoing infrastructure development, has drawn increased attention from regional and international business communities.

Tango's Roots on Both Shores: Uruguay's Claim to a Shared Cultural Legacy

While Argentina has long dominated the global narrative around tango, Uruguay holds a firmly documented and legally recognized stake in the dance's origins. The Río de la Plata region, straddling both nations, is acknowledged as the birthplace of one of the world's most celebrated musical and dance traditions.

Venezuela's Ancient Plateau Wilderness: A Closer Look at Canaima National Park

Canaima National Park, located in southeastern Venezuela, stands as one of the largest national parks in the world and shelters some of the planet's most ancient geological formations. Its dramatic tepui tablelands and record-breaking waterfalls have made it a landmark of global natural heritage.

‘Like someone whacking a piñata’: orcas explode sunfish by ramming them at high speed

This never-before observed behaviour can tell us a lot about whale intelligence.

Ajiaco Santafereño: Bogotá's Soul-Warming Chicken Stew

High in the Andean savanna, where the air turns crisp and the afternoon mist rolls over red-tiled rooftops, there is one dish that every bogotano craves when the cold settles into their bones: ajiaco santafereño. It is not merely soup — it is a ritual, a bowl of golden broth thick with three kinds of potato, tender shredded chicken, and sweet corn on the cob, finished tableside with a dollop of heavy cream, a scatter of capers, and half an avocado waiting patiently at the rim of the plate.

Venezuela's Colonial Past Endures in Architecture, Culture, and Urban Identity

Venezuela's Spanish colonial heritage remains visible across its historic cities, shaping architecture, religion, and civic life centuries after independence. From Coro to Caracas, the legacy of the colonial era continues to define the country's cultural landscape.

South America's Intangible Economy: Brazil and the Region Face a Knowledge-Investment Reckoning

Global investment in intangible assets crossed USD 10 trillion for the first time in 2025, and new data from WIPO confirm Brazil's place among the world's largest such investors — but the broader South American picture reveals a region still working out how to compete in an economy increasingly built on software, data, and ideas rather than machinery and buildings.

Sun, Sand, and Prestige: A Guide to the Beaches of Punta del Este

Punta del Este, Uruguay's premier coastal resort city, draws visitors from across South America and beyond with its diverse stretch of Atlantic and Río de la Plata shoreline. Its beaches range from calm, family-friendly bays to open ocean surf breaks, each with a distinct character.

Encebollado: Ecuador's Beloved Fish & Yuca Soup

Long before the sun fully clears the Andes, the aroma of encebollado already drifts through the markets of Guayaquil and the fishing stalls of Manta. Steam rises from battered pots, carrying notes of cumin, cilantro, and the briny sweetness of fresh albacore. Vendors ladle the soup into bowls with the practiced rhythm of a ritual repeated daily for generations, and customers—students, taxi drivers, office workers, and the occasional night owl nursing a late evening—line up without hesitation.

A Culinary Crossroads: The Spice Traditions of Surinamese Cuisine

Suriname's cuisine reflects the country's layered colonial and migratory history, blending South Asian, Indonesian, African, Chinese, and Indigenous flavors into a distinct culinary identity. Spices sourced locally and imported form the backbone of a food culture rarely found elsewhere in the Americas.