America is the most innovative
Typically, studies on innovation measure the number of patents any industry or nation has as an indicator of how either is innovating, but Good Magazine took a deeper look at innovation, calling patent volume a mistaken indicator. For example, China typically dominates in the number of patents granted, but Good says they innovate on a domestic level which reduces their actual impact, whereas nations like America, home of Apple and Boeing innovate on a global level which is more influential.
Rather than measuring patent volume, Good measured the success rates of nations’ patent applications compared patents granted, how other nations protect their patents to expand their global reach, how patents are cited within an industry, and how inventions are created.
The top 9 most innovative nations
America leads the list by a wide margin, based on Good Magazine’s study of innovation. The companies in the top 100 most innovative hail from only nine nations (below is each country listed with the percentage of the top 100 they comprise of):
- America – 40 percent
- Japan – 27 percent
- France – 11 percent
- Sweden – 6 percent
- Germany – 4 percent
- Netherlands – 3 percent
- South Korea – 3 percent
- Switzerland – 3 percent
- Liechtenstein – 1 percent
The 10 ten most innovative industries in the world
- Semiconductor and electronic component manufacturing – 14 percent
- Chemical maufacturing – 13 percent
- Computer hardware manufacturing – 11 percent
- Consumer product manufacturing – 9 percent
- Machinery manufacturing – 8 percent
- Telecommunication equipment – 7 percent
- Electrical products – 6 percent
- Industrial manufacturing – 6 percent
- Transportation equipment – 5 percent
- Computer software manufacturing – 4 percent
A different look at innovation by Good Magazine, click the image to enlarge the infographic:
