Production and Innovation: 2026 National Capability Ratings
Figure 1. Top 25 Nations: Production & Innovation Capability Frontier
| Production & Innovation | Hard Capability | Soft Capability | Econ Capability | Frontiers | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tier | Nation | CT | SI | NS | HC | II | GI | FS | PI | TI | T1 | T2 | T3 |
| T1 | 🇮🇱 Israel | T2 | T2 | T1 | T1 | T2 | T1 | T3 | T1 | T1 | 5 | 3 | 1 |
| T1 | 🇸🇬 Singapore | T4 | T1 | T4 | T1 | T1 | T1 | T1 | T1 | T1 | 7 | - | - |
| T1 | 🇰🇷 South Korea | T2 | T1 | T3 | T2 | T1 | T2 | T2 | T1 | T1 | 4 | 4 | 1 |
| T1 | 🇸🇪 Sweden | T2 | T1 | T4 | T2 | T1 | T1 | T1 | T1 | T2 | 5 | 3 | - |
| T1 | 🇺🇸 United States | T1 | T1 | T1 | T1 | T1 | T3 | T1 | T1 | T1 | 8 | - | 1 |
| T2 | 🇨🇳 China | T2 | T1 | T2 | T3 | T2 | T4 | T3 | T2 | T2 | 1 | 5 | 2 |
| T2 | 🇯🇵 Japan | T3 | T1 | T3 | T4 | T1 | T3 | T2 | T2 | T2 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| T2 | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | T2 | T1 | T4 | T3 | T1 | T2 | T2 | T2 | T2 | 2 | 5 | 1 |
| T2 | 🇹🇼 Taiwan | T6 | T4 | T5 | T5 | T3 | T4 | T4 | T2 | T2 | - | 2 | 1 |
| T2 | 🇦🇪 UAE | T5 | T1 | T4 | T4 | T1 | T2 | T2 | T2 | T2 | 2 | 4 | - |
| T3 | 🇩🇪 Germany | T2 | T2 | T4 | T4 | T1 | T4 | T1 | T3 | T3 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| T3 | 🇫🇷 France | T3 | T2 | T2 | T4 | T2 | T5 | T1 | T3 | T3 | 1 | 3 | 3 |
| T3 | 🇳🇴 Norway | T4 | T1 | T4 | T3 | T1 | T1 | T2 | T3 | T3 | 3 | 1 | 3 |
| T3 | 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia | T6 | T2 | T4 | T5 | T3 | T6 | T3 | T3 | T5 | - | 1 | 2 |
| T4 | 🇦🇺 Australia | T5 | T3 | T4 | T4 | T2 | T3 | T3 | T4 | T4 | - | 1 | 3 |
| T4 | 🇪🇹 Ethiopia | T15 | T11 | T8 | T9 | T12 | T13 | T11 | T4 | T14 | - | - | - |
| T4 | 🇮🇳 India | T6 | T4 | T3 | T9 | T3 | T9 | T5 | T4 | T7 | - | - | 2 |
| T4 | 🇱🇺 Luxembourg | T7 | T3 | T7 | T4 | T2 | T3 | T4 | T4 | T5 | - | 1 | 2 |
| T4 | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | T7 | T4 | T6 | T5 | T3 | T2 | T4 | T4 | T5 | - | 1 | 1 |
| T4 | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | T4 | T3 | T3 | T4 | T2 | T4 | T1 | T4 | T4 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Figure 1. Production and Innovation Capabilities by Capability Group
| Capability | Top 5 | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Economic Output and Productivity | ||
| Factor productivity | 🇸🇬 🇸🇪 🇩🇰 🇮🇱 🇨🇠| Efficiency of labour and capital in production |
| GDP scale and growth | 🇺🇸 🇸🇪 🇸🇬 🇮🇱 🇦🇪 | Economic size and expansion rates |
| Total factor productivity | 🇸🇪 🇸🇬 🇮🇱 🇨🇠🇪🇪 | Overall productivity beyond labour and capital inputs |
| Industrial and Manufacturing Capacity | ||
| Advanced manufacturing capacity | 🇰🇷 🇸🇪 🇹🇼 🇸🇬 🇯🇵 | High-tech production facilities and automation |
| Foundational industries | 🇰🇷 🇸🇪 🇯🇵 🇳🇱 🇦🇪 | Basic manufacturing and industrial infrastructure |
| Strategic materials processing | 🇨🇳 🇯🇵 🇸🇪 🇨🇱 🇰🇷 | Refining and processing of critical raw materials |
| Innovation Ecosystem and Frontier Technology | ||
| Frontier technologies | 🇮🇱 🇺🇸 🇸🇪 🇨🇳 🇸🇬 | Development of cutting-edge technologies |
| Global positioning in innovation | 🇨🇠🇺🇸 🇸🇪 🇮🇱 🇸🇬 | International standing in innovation rankings |
| Innovation networks | 🇮🇱 🇸🇬 🇸🇪 🇪🇪 🇫🇮 | Collaboration between research, industry and government |
| Intellectual Property and Knowledge Assets | ||
| Knowledge-intensive exports | 🇺🇸 🇮🇱 🇨🇠🇸🇬 🇸🇪 | High-value exports based on intellectual property |
| Knowledge transfer | 🇳🇱 🇰🇷 🇪🇪 🇩🇰 🇫🇮 | Technology licensing and knowledge commercialisation |
| Patents and trademarks | 🇰🇷 🇺🇸 🇸🇬 🇮🇱 🇯🇵 | Intellectual property registration and protection |
| Output Complexity | ||
| Diversity of exports | 🇺🇸 🇸🇬 🇸🇪 🇳🇱 🇩🇰 | Range and variety of export products |
| Technological sophistication | 🇺🇸 🇮🇱 🇸🇪 🇪🇪 🇨🇠| Complexity and knowledge intensity of production |
| Value chain positioning | 🇸🇬 🇹🇼 🇸🇪 🇨🇠🇺🇸 | Position in global production and value addition |
| Research and Development | ||
| Human capital in R&D | 🇮🇱 🇨🇠🇺🇸 🇰🇷 🇸🇬 | Researchers and scientists in development activities |
| Innovation activity | 🇮🇱 🇸🇪 🇨🇠🇺🇸 🇸🇬 | New product development and process innovation |
| Research and development intensity | 🇮🇱 🇨🇠🇰🇷 🇺🇸 🇸🇪 | R&D expenditure as percentage of GDP |
| SMEs and Start-ups | ||
| Entrepreneurial activity | 🇮🇱 🇪🇪 🇺🇸 🇸🇬 🇸🇪 | New business formation and entrepreneurship rates |
| Start-up and SME financing support | 🇮🇱 🇸🇬 🇦🇪 🇺🇸 🇸🇪 | Access to venture capital and growth funding |
| Start-up and SME survival and growth | 🇮🇱 🇪🇪 🇸🇪 🇺🇸 🇩🇰 | Business sustainability and scaling success rates |
| Technology Adoption and Diffusion | ||
| Digital adoption | 🇪🇪 🇸🇬 🇸🇪 🇩🇰 🇰🇷 | Integration of digital technologies across the economy |
| Industrial technology diffusion | 🇸🇪 🇸🇬 🇰🇷 🇩🇰 🇨🇠| Spread of advanced technologies in manufacturing |
| Sectoral technology penetration | 🇸🇪 🇪🇪 🇩🇰 🇮🇱 🇰🇷 | Technology uptake across economic sectors |
