Global Innovation Index 2025: Innovation at a Crossroads

The Global Innovation Index 2025 offers an in-depth examination of innovation ecosystems in 139 economies, monitoring worldwide trends through investment flows, technological advancements, adoption dynamics, and their broader socioeconomic effects.

According to the findings, innovation investments in 2024 were generally positive, with the exception of venture capital. However, overall growth remains at a historically low level. Following the downturn in 2023, innovation investment showed some signs of recovery in 2024, though this rebound is fragile, with most investment areas still falling short of their long-term growth trends.

In 2024, technology advanced across nearly all fronts, with the sole exception of novel drug development, which declined. The most notable progress was seen in supercomputing efficiency and falling battery prices, while advancements in wind power and genome sequencing continued, though at a slower pace compared to the dramatic gains of the previous decade.

Innovation is generating clear benefits for both human well-being and economic performance, with recovery from the disruptions of COVID-19 now firmly underway. Overall, the impact is positive, although certain environmental concerns persist.