Switzerland is the world’s most innovative country, followed by Sweden, the United States and others. Europe leads the chart with 15 countries from the region making it to the top 25 of the Global Innovation Index 2025. The report has also pointed to the declining trend of research and development amid rapid increase in technologies in AI and quantum computing.
Published by the World Intellectual Property Organisation’s (WIPO), the Global Innovation Index (GII) 2025 shows that R&D growth fell to 2.9 per cent in 2024 and is expected to drop further to 2.3 per cent in 2025, reported the Indian Express. It is a significant fall as the same parameter had shown a 4.4 per cent increase the previous year, the lowest growth since the 2010 financial crisis, the IE report added.
The rankings: Who stands where
Switzerland ranks at top spot on the list, followed by Sweden and the the United States. Canada figures at 17th position of emerging global innovation hubs. Six economies of Southeast Asia, East Asia, and Oceania (SEAO) appeared in the top 25.
China is positioned at 10 overall while it stands at rank 2 in R&D expenditure.
Where does India stand on the Global Innovation Index 2025 rankings?
India has performed quite well in areas like Knowledge & Technology Outputs (22) and Market Sophistication (38). The worst ranking has been in the areas of Business Sophistication (64), Infrastructure (61), and Institutions (58).
This year, India has placed at 38th position, 10 ranks higher than last where it was in 2020 (48).
What is significant to note is that India holds the top spot among lower-middle-income economies and in the Central and Southern Asia region, the report mentioned.
How are the rankings done?
According to Global Innovation Index 2025, the Global Innovation Index 2025 is prepared by the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) by evaluating 139 economies on over 80 indicators that measure innovation inputs and outputs. Here are the top 10 countries on the list:
- Switzerland
- Sweden
- United States
- Republic of Korea
- Singapore
- United Kingdom
- Finland
- Netherlands
- Denmark
- China