What insights can the “2024 Global Innovation Index Report” provide about China’s innovation landscape?
The World Intellectual Property Organization released its “2024 Global Innovation Index Report” on September 26, revealing that China has made notable strides in innovation, ranking eleventh globally—an improvement of one spot. This report examines the innovation ecosystems of over 130 economies and assesses them through two main sub-indices, “Innovation Inputs” and “Innovation Outputs,” which are analyzed across 78 different indicators within seven categories such as knowledge and technology outputs, human capital and research, and market maturity.
While the report highlights a decline in global venture capital, international patent applications, and scientific publications in 2023, along with slower growth in R&D spending, it still underscores the resilience of technological progress, particularly in areas like genomic sequencing, computational power, and power batteries. It also points to positive trends, such as decreasing global poverty rates and increasing labor productivity.
WIPO Director General Daren Tang remarked that emerging economies will likely drive the next wave of global innovation, stating, “More and more countries recognize that unleashing the innovative potential of their people is critical for achieving growth, development, and addressing local and global challenges.”
Can you elaborate on the significance of China’s ranking?
China’s ascension to the eleventh spot in the global innovation rankings is particularly significant as it stands out as the only middle-income nation among the top 30. Over the past decade, China has transformed its innovation inputs into notable outputs, ranking seventh in “innovation outputs” and twenty-third in “innovation inputs,” both showing considerable improvement from the previous year. Among the seven categories evaluated, China stands out in knowledge and technology outputs, infrastructure, and business maturity. The country’s advancements in power batteries and electric vehicles showcase its rapid innovation development.
What does the report say about China’s technology innovation clusters?
The report indicates that China is home to 26 of the world’s top 100 technology innovation clusters, an increase from 24 the previous year, reinforcing its leadership position globally for the second consecutive year. These technology innovation clusters, defined as areas where academic institutions, businesses, and research organizations interact, exhibit significant innovation capabilities crucial for technological and economic advancement. Notably, seven of the world’s top ten technology innovation clusters are located in Asia, with key areas including the Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou cluster, Beijing, and the Shanghai-Suzhou cluster.
Liu Hua, director of the WIPO China Office, emphasized the notable increase in China’s technology output and international patent applications, attributing this success to strong government support, the innovative capabilities of Chinese enterprises, and enthusiastic involvement from research institutions.
What do experts say about China’s innovation progress?
Sasha Vincent, a co-author of the Global Innovation Index report, points out that the rankings of technology innovation clusters serve as indicators of a country’s activity level in scientific publications and international patent applications under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT). China has excelled in this regard, as universities and research institutions contribute significantly to innovation, enhancing both China’s economic growth and global technological progress. Carsten Fink, WIPO’s chief economist, highlighted that a significant amount of innovation activity is concentrated in major urban centers across China, marking it as a notable achievement. Overall, various indicators suggest that multiple Chinese industries are elevating their technological innovation to a leading position on the global stage.
How has China cultivated its innovation ecosystem over the years?
In recent years, China has prioritized technological innovation as a fundamental driver of its development strategy. Significant milestones in the scientific field have been reached through coordinated efforts across society. Rapid innovation is emerging, particularly in cutting-edge fields that are now entering competitive phases, showing a shift from merely increasing quantitative strength to making qualitative improvements in systemic capabilities.
Data from the National Bureau of Statistics indicates that China’s research and experimental development expenditures hit 33,278 billion yuan in 2023, a staggering increase of 233 times since 1991. Moreover, statistics from the China National Intellectual Property Administration show that Chinese applicants consistently lead in international patents, designs, and trademark applications within the WIPO’s three main business systems.
Furthermore, a Bloomberg report forecasts that the contribution of the high-tech sector to China’s GDP will rise from 11% in 2018 to 19% by 2026. Including new energy vehicles, lithium batteries, and photovoltaic products—often referred to as the “new trifecta”—this figure could soar to 23% by 2026. The Economist has observed that China’s status as the world’s R&D lab is expanding, with many multinational companies’ R&D facilities in the country becoming innovation incubators that lead to widespread application of their findings globally.
Daren Tang from WIPO concluded that China has established a robust intellectual property protection and innovation ecosystem, becoming a significant contributor to global intellectual property rights. He noted, “The volume of intellectual property submissions from China exceeds the total from all other countries combined, underscoring the Chinese government’s commitment to IP protection.”
