Top inventions in spheres such as technology, medicine, energy and defense were honored at the Research & Development Council of New Jersey’s 46th Annual Edison Patent Awards ceremony, recently held at Bell Works in Holmdel. With the awards widely regarded as high honors for innovation in the Garden State, 11 entities were recognized for 12 patents while six visionary individuals were separately noted for their leadership, advocacy and research..
Patents
“New Jersey is the most prolific invention powerhouse that our nation has,” Paul Manz, retired U.S. Army employee and 2025 Edison Patent Award winner, told the audience. Manz’s general sentiment is backed by data: NJ was cited was the fifth most innovative state in the nation according to a 2020 CommercialCafe study that found 161,218 U.S.-based assignee patents filed and granted in the state since 1975.
With 2025 Edison Patent Awards ranging from “innovations that improve knee replacements and bone grafts to new ways of streaming online content and sharing data between unmanned vehicles,” the R&D Council said winners were chosen by a team of board members who judged patents not only for the significance of the problem they addressed but for “utility/socio-economic value, novelty, and commercial impact.”
The award winners are Avantor and Amgen, Merck & Co., Inc., MTF Biologics, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Nokia Bell Labs, Princeton University, Rowan University, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Siemens AG, Stryker, and the U.S. Army DEVCOM Armaments Center
Individuals
The R&D Council additionally recognized the six individuals, including 2025 Science & Technology Medal Recipient Robert Cohen, vice president, innovation and technology for Stryker’s Orthopaedics Group. He was honored “for his decades of leadership in orthopaedic innovation and digital health,” according to the R&D Council.
Cohen told the audience, “Let's truly remember where we are and why we're here: the R&D Council of New Jersey, a board of our peers from industry, academia, government, and foundations, uses these awards to champion innovation in the state of New Jersey
The five other award winners are:
Visionary Award – John Crowley, president & CEO of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), received the Visionary Award “for his enduring impact on rare disease innovation and biotechnology advocacy.”
Educator of the Year – Brian Strom, M.D., M.P.H., chancellor of Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences and executive vice president for health affairs at Rutgers University, was recognized “for his transformative impact on medical education in New Jersey.”
Catalyst Award – Craig Arnold, Ph.D., vice dean for innovation and university innovation officer at Princeton University, was honored “for his leadership in Princeton—and New Jersey—as a hub for innovation. He is playing a key role in launching the NJ AI Hub and expanding Princeton’s innovation infrastructure, helping to accelerate research translation, entrepreneurship, and statewide collaboration in emerging technologies.”
Emerging Tech Award – Nathaniel Banks and Yidian Liu, co-founders of PolyGoneSystems, were recognized “for their groundbreaking microplastic filtration technology.”
Kim Case, executive director of the R&D Council, said in a statement, “These six individuals exemplify the many ways innovation can drive real-world change—from saving lives and cleaning our environment to building a stronger research infrastructure for the future.
“Their vision, dedication, and leadership continue to inspire the next generation of scientists, entrepreneurs, and problem-solvers across our state.”
