""

Global Innovation Index 2023: Switzerland, Sweden and the US lead the Global Innovation ranking

Published

Innovation robust but startup funding uncertain 

Switzerland, Sweden, the US, the UK and Singapore are the world’s most innovative economies in 2023, according to  WIPO’s Global Innovation Index.

A group of middle-income economies have emerged over the past decade as the fastest climbers of the ranking.

The GII, founded by Oxford Said’s Peter Moores Dean, Soumitra Dutta in 2007, uses 80 indicators to track global innovation trends in 130-plus economies, guiding policy makers and business leaders in stimulating human ingenuity. This year, the report’s findings are unveiled against a background of slow economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, high interest rates and geopolitical conflict. 

The 2023 edition identifies an increasingly uncertain outlook for the venture capital (VC) that helps transform human ingenuity into new products and services, with the global value of VC funding marking a significant plunge last year. 

In the annual ranking, China – the only middle-income economy in the GII top 30 – ranks 12th followed by Japan in the 13th position. Israel (14th) is back among the GII top 15, gaining two steps. Finland (6th) is on an upward trend along with Denmark (9th), Sweden (2nd) and the Baltic economies (Estonia 16th, Lithuania 34th and Latvia 37th). 

We are witnessing exponential progress in digital technologies and many fields of deep science. This is providing a boost to innovation across sectors and holds the hope of providing solutions to some of our world’s complex problems.

Soumitra Dutta

GII Co-editor and Dean of Saïd Business School

""
Soumitra Dutta

In the past 10 years, Indonesia (61st) joins China, Turkey (39th), India (40th), Vietnam (46th), the Philippines (56th), and the Iran (62nd) in the group of middle-income economies to have climbed the GII rankings fastest. In the last four years, and since the pandemic started, Mauritius (57th), Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Brazil and Pakistan have risen the most in rank (in order of rank progression). 

A total of 21 economies outperformed on innovation as expected relative to their level of development, the majority located in sub-Saharan Africa and South East Asia, East Asia, and Oceania. India, Moldova and Vietnam are each innovation overperformers for 13 years in a row. Indonesia, Pakistan and Uzbekistan maintain their overperformer status for a second year and Brazil for a third consecutive year. 

Commenting on the report, Soumitra, the GII's co-editor, said: 'We are witnessing exponential progress in digital technologies and many fields of deep science. This is providing a boost to innovation across sectors and holds the hope of providing solutions to some of our world’s complex problems in climate, food, health and related challenges.'

WIPO Director General Daren Tang, said: 'A group of emerging economies are consistently climbing the GII ranks, showing how a focus on the innovation ecosystem can make a difference. Globally, despite a downturn in venture capital funding, the GII 2023 should reassure us that innovative activity currently continues to run strong but that innovative activity should continue to shift from quantity to quality. With the GII, policymakers across the world continue to have a rich and trusted source of data and information to craft pro-innovation policies to unleash the innovative potential of their people.'

Among the GII’s key findings: 

  • Scientific publications, research and development (R&D), the number of venture capital (VC) deals (but not their value) and patents continued to increase to higher than ever levels. However, growth rates were lower than the exceptional increases seen in 2021. 

  • In 2022, spending by corporations representing the largest investors in R&D reached USD 1.1 trillion in 2022 – a historic high. They increased their R&D spend by around 7.4 percent in 2022, down from 15 percent growth in 2021. 

  • Mirroring the recent surge of artificial intelligence, the ICT hardware sectors saw graphic card and chipmakers in the lead with the most notable R&D growth in 2022. Other sectors which cut back R&D spending during the pandemic, such as automobiles and travel and leisure, invested strongly again in 2022. 

  • According to preliminary data, global government R&D budgets are estimated to have increased in real terms in 2022. Significant increases took place in Japan and the Republic of Korea, and smaller ones in Germany, making up for cuts in other economies. 

  • Reflecting a deteriorating climate for risk finance, the total value of VC investments declined sharply by close to 40 percent in 2022, albeit from unusually high levels in 2021. Africa was the only region not to see a decline in 2022. 

  • The VC outlook for 2023 and 2024 is uncertain, with high interest rates likely to continue to impact the financing of innovation. 

  • Indicators in the fields of information technology, health and energy continue to show progress – the Digital Age and Deep Science innovation waves  outlined in GII 2022 are well underway. 

  • Overall, technology adoption is developing positively even though penetration for some technologies, such as electric vehicles and cancer treatment, remains low. 

 

With the GII, policymakers across the world continue to have a rich and trusted source of data and information to craft pro-innovation policies to unleash the innovative potential of their people. 

Daren Tang 

WIPO Director General

Data published last week from the GII showed Oxford is recognised as one of the top science and innovation clusters in the world. The index establishes clusters through analysis of patent-filing activity and scientific article publication, documenting the geographical areas around the world with the highest density of inventors and scientific authors. 

Register for the UK GII launch event on Monday 2 October