By He Yin, People’s Daily
China has risen to the 10th position in the global innovation ranking for 2025, up one spot from the previous year, marking its first entry into the top 10, according to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). Since 2013, China has risen 25 places, making it one of the fastest-rising economies in innovation.
This progress reflects steady advances in basic research, breakthroughs in key and core technologies, leadership in frontier fields such as artificial intelligence and renewable energy, and the deep integration of digital and real economies. These achievements stem from China’s innovation-driven development strategy and its efforts to build a science and technology powerhouse.
“Reaching the global top 10 highlights China’s prominent role as a global leader in innovation,” said WIPO Assistant Director General Marco Aleman.
Recent milestones include the regular operation of the Tiangong space station, the Chang’e-6 mission’s return of the first samples from the far side of the moon, and the Haidou-1 submersible’s descent to more than 10,000 meters below the sea surface. Major scientific and technological advances – from large-scale 5G deployment, BeiDou’s global positioning services to brain-computer interface applications – demonstrate how scientific and industrial innovation are converging, with benefits reaching millions of households.
China now has the world’s largest R&D workforce and has led globally in both international journal publications and Patent Cooperation Treaty applications for five consecutive years, reinforcing its position as a global innovation hub.
Robust policy support and a dynamic innovation ecosystem underpin this growth. China has prioritized basic research, encouraged breakthroughs in key technologies, and enhanced its national innovation system to strengthen scientific self-reliance. In 2024, R&D investment exceeded 3.6 trillion yuan (about $500 billion), ranking second in the world, with 249.7 billion yuan invested in basic research.
Supportive policies – ranging from tax incentives and public procurement to enterprise participation in national R&D projects – have catalyzed corporate innovation. China is now home to over 500,000 high-tech enterprises. In 2024, 524 companies from the Chinese mainland were listed among the world’s top 2,000 industrial R&D investors, injecting sustained momentum into the economy.
China’s innovation appeal is underpinned by its commitment to openness and international cooperation. As a builder and contributor to the global innovation network, China actively promotes open scientific and technological cooperation for the common good, expands platforms for international exchange, strengthens intellectual property protection, and advances more proactive and inclusive talent policies, accelerating the development of a globally competitive open innovation ecosystem.
To date, China has established sci-tech cooperation relationships with more than 160 countries and regions and signed 119 intergovernmental sci-tech cooperation agreements. Through the Belt and Road Science, Technology and Innovation Cooperation Action Plan and the establishment of “Belt and Road” joint laboratories, China is paving new pathways for collaborative innovation and reinforcing its role as a key pillar of global innovation.
As noted by Wirtschaftswoche, a German weekly business news magazine, China’s technological capabilities and diversified demand for foreign investment have become a source of confidence for global investors.
Innovation remains the primary engine of development. With accelerating momentum, China will inject new vitality into the world economy, collaborate with other countries to foster a more open and inclusive global innovation network, and contribute greater strength to addressing global challenges and advancing peace and development.
