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2023 Global Innovation Index: Singapore regains top ranking in Asia
06 October 2023
Singapore moved up two notches in the 2023 Global Innovation Index (GII) to 5th in the world and regained its top spot in Asia after coming behind South Korea in the last two years.
Published by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the GII ranks 132 countries in innovation performance. The index, a widely recognized benchmarking tool to guide policymakers and businesses in promoting innovation, is based on two broad areas: innovation inputs and outputs. It uses 80 indicators, including measures on political environment, education, infrastructure and knowledge creation of each economy.
Singapore continued to be ranked 1st in innovation inputs and performed well in indicators it is traditionally strong in, namely, ‘Institutions – institutional, regulatory and business environment’ (ranked 1st), ‘Human capital and research’ (2nd, up from 7th in 2022), ‘Infrastructure’ (8th, up from 11th in 2022) and ‘Business sophistication’ (3rd).
In innovation outputs, Singapore ranked 12th (up from 14th in 2022) and improved its performance in the indicators ‘Knowledge and technology outputs’ (10th, up from 13th in 2022) and ‘Creative outputs’ (18th, up from 21st in 2022).
In relation to intellectual property, Singapore improved its rankings for most of the IP-related indicators with increases in IP applications.
Singapore improved two positions to be ranked first in the ‘Investment’ indicator as a nod to its dynamic venture capital environment, maintaining top positions in venture capital value and deals received (as scaled by GDP). The conducive investment climate enables businesses to grow and innovation to flourish.
Singapore also performed well in a new indicator, ‘Unicorn valuations’ (ranked 8th), based on the total valuation of all unicorns in a country as a percentage of GDP. A unicorn company is a private company with a valuation of over US$1 billion.
IPOS chief executive Rena Lee said: “We welcome the latest GII results for Singapore and are encouraged that we have improved our ranking globally and in the region. The GII is a robust and dynamic study that provides valuable insights to help Singapore grow its innovation system. It is also a testament to the combined efforts of the whole government working with the private and people sectors to nurture an innovative culture and environment for enterprises and creators to thrive.”
- Asia IP
