Top 10 countries in research and development of artificial intelligence technology

AI research is a global endeavor. While major powers like the United States and China are getting the spotlight for their contributions to AI, other countries around the world are experimenting with the technology, discovering new breakthroughs, and attracting the attention of private investors.

Stanford University’s “Artificial Intelligence 2023” report estimates that global private investment in AI reached $91.9 billion in 2022, but this is just the tip of the iceberg. Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs, a US multinational investment bank, said that global investment in AI reached $110.2 billion in 2023 and is forecast to increase to $158.4 billion by 2025.

Here are the top 10 countries in AI research and development based on rankings from the “Global AI Index,” the Global AI Investment Survey by Mirae Assets Financial Group (Korea), and the AI ​​Index Report by Stanford University (USA).

1. America

Today, the United States is the most active country in AI research. According to the US think tank Macro Polo, nearly 60% of top AI researchers work for US universities and companies, while Mirae Assets Financial Group says $249 billion in private investment has been raised to date.

Silicon Valley alone is home to some of the most prominent vendors in the AI ​​space, including OpenAI, Google, Meta, and Anthropic, which have contributed to the creation of leading products including the GPT-4 large language model, DALL-E 3, Bard, Llama 2, and Claude 2.

At the current stage of market development, GPT-4 is naturally the “golden goose” of the AI ​​race, reaching 100 million weekly active users.

Investment in AI in the region is also growing strongly, with total private investment in AI reaching $47.4 billion in 2022, accounting for more than half of total global investment in AI that year, according to Goldman Sachs research.

The US government is also actively investing in AI research and development, spending $3.3 billion on this technology in 2022.

2. China

China is the second-largest contributor to AI research, with 11% of top AI researchers and has raised $95 billion in private investment between 2022 and 2023, according to Mirae Assets Financial Group.

China's leading tech companies Tencent, Huawei, and Baidu are leading the country's AI innovation with new releases, including Tencent's Hunyuan large language model (LLM), a Chinese alternative to ChatGPT, Huawei's Pangu, a large language model with 1.085 trillion parameters, and Baidu's Ernie AI model, which the company claims offers features on par with OpenAI's GPT-4 large language model.

The Chinese government is also investing heavily in the AI ​​arms race, with the International Data Corporation (IDC) predicting that Chinese investment will reach $38.1 billion by 2027, or 9% of the world’s total.

3. United Kingdom

For many years, the UK has been one of the leading contributors to the AI ​​race. In fact, according to the International Trade Administration (ITA), the UK is the third largest AI market in the world, after the US and China, with a current value of $21 billion, expected to reach $1 trillion by 2035.

The country boasts a number of AI startups in the region, including DeepMind and Darktrace, which use AI to provide businesses with real-time cloud-based threat detection.

UK government spending on research and development is also increasing, with Chancellor Rishi Sunak planning to increase spending on chips and supercomputers by £400m, including a £100m investment in a supercomputer facility in Bristol, UK, in partnership with US multinational technology corporation Hewlett Packard Enterprise and the University of Bristol.

UK leaders also shared their thoughts on the future of AI at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, in January, acknowledging the power of AI while calling for global safeguards.

4. Israel

According to Mirae Assets, Israel's local tech industry has established itself as a leader in AI development and has achieved $11 billion in private investment between 2013 and 2022, ranking fourth in the world.

According to Israel’s Startup and Technology News (Ctech), there will be 144 AI-related startups born in Israel by 2023, with total investment in the sector reaching $2.3 billion. The Israeli government has also announced plans to invest $8 million to promote the development of AI applications in Hebrew and Arabic.

The region is home to pioneering AI organizations, including AI-based cybersecurity platform Deep Instinct, AI tool maker Wordtune, AI21 Labs, and enterprise security AI provider SentinelOne.

5. Canada

Canada has quietly emerged as one of the top five countries in AI research. Between 2022 and 2023, $2.57 billion was invested in domestic AI research, bringing the total AI investment to $8.64 billion.

The Government of Canada is also committed to investing in Responsible AI development across the country, with an investment of more than $124 million to the University of Montreal by June 2023 through the government's key research development fund.

Some of the leading AI companies operating in Canada include enterprise language model provider Cohere, generative AI platform Scale AI, and AI search service provider Coveo.

6. France

According to Mirae Assets, France is not only one of the European Union's most important economic powers, but also a leader in the region's AI research, with 338 startups and $7 billion in private investment raised between 2013 and 2022.

Government spending on AI is also expanding, with French President Emmanuel Macron pledging €500 million, or about $533 million, to create new AI “champions.”

The country is home to a number of AI startups, including open-source AI hosting platform Hugging Face, Mistral AI, open-source large language model developer Mistral 7B, and AI cybersecurity provider Armis.

7. India

India is the largest country in South Asia and the region’s largest contributor to AI research. Last year, India raised $3.24 billion, making it the fifth largest AI investor in the world. India is also estimated to have the highest AI skills penetration among the G20 and Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries.

India’s Minister of Electronics and Information Technology, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, recently announced that the Government of India will soon launch the “AI India” program to encourage the growth of the AI ​​startup ecosystem in the country.

Some of the notable Indian AI startups include conversational AI platform Avaamo, AI health screening platform HEAPs, AI and robotic smart screening provider SigTuple, and AI-based automation platform Yellow.ai.

8. Japan

As one of the major economies in Asia, Japan also plays an important role in the development of AI globally. Mirae Assets Financial Group estimates that Japan has 294 AI startups and has raised $4 billion in private investment in the AI ​​sector between 2013 and 2022.

The country has also announced plans to invest 2 trillion yen, or $13 billion, in developing semiconductors and artificial intelligence, thus having the potential to become a major player in this market in the future.

Some notable AI startups based in Japan include leading robot supplier SoftBank Robotics, deep learning and autonomous vehicle technology provider Preferred Networks, and AI-based healthcare and symptom checker provider Ubie.

9. Germany

Germany is another major player in the global AI market, with 245 startups and $7 billion in private investment raised in the AI ​​sector between 2013 and 2022, according to Mirae Assets.

The German government is also planning to invest, announcing in August that it would double its budget for AI research and commit nearly €1 billion to developing AI solutions.

Germany-based AI startups include autonomous drone and air mobility service provider Volocopter, major language model developer Aleph Alpha, translation company DeepL and conversational AI platform Parloa.

10. Singapore

Finally, Singapore is one of the leading AI countries in Southeast Asia, with a modest ecosystem of 165 AI startups and $5 billion in AI investments generated between 2013 and 2022.

In 2021, the Singapore government pledged to invest about S$500 million ($362 million) in AI over five years as part of its National Artificial Intelligence Strategy. The country also established a National Artificial Intelligence Office to collaborate with startups and research institutes in the region to drive growth.

Some notable AI startups in Singapore include remote patient monitoring provider Biofourmis, data intelligence platform Near, conversational AI platform Active.Ai, and AI-based accounting platform Osome.

In summary, the 10 countries mentioned in this article are the leading countries in AI technology research and development in the world. Each country has its own strengths and highlights in the field of AI, and they are investing heavily in AI research, development and application in many different fields.

The rapid development of AI brings great potential for the economic, social and scientific and technological development of countries. However, it also poses a number of challenges such as ethical issues, employment, cybersecurity, etc. Therefore, countries need to cooperate closely with each other to develop AI responsibly and sustainably, ensuring benefits for all humanity.