World class in innovation: Germany ranks first in the Bloomberg Innovation Index 2020, ousting South Korea and Singapore. For the survey, the US business service examined 105 economies for their innovative strength and analyzed, among other things, productivity, R&D expenditure, number of researchers, value added, patent applications and high-tech density. Germany scores above all in terms of value creation in manufacturing, patent activity and concentration of high-tech companies in the country. Thuringia is also heavily involved: Around 100 world market leaders are active in the state, including highly innovative medium-sized companies, but also global players such as Zeiss, Jenoptik etc., whose research expenditure accounts for a considerable round about 10% of revenues.
