The Performance of the Austrian Innovation System

The report provides a comprehensive and systematic assessment of the performance of the Austrian innovation system in an international comparison. Of 14 broad areas of the innovation system, the areas of "research and development financing", "international integration", "attractiveness of locations" and "business RTI" are above average compared to the leading EU countries; the areas of "research, technology and innovation (RTI) in climate and environment", "digitalisation" and "innovation-intensive start-ups" are well below average. Slightly below average are the areas of "efficiency", "tertiary education", "secondary education", "gender equality", "regulation and taxation", and "research at universities and non-university institutions". As a general pattern, Austria's innovation performance is generally (with exceptions) above the EU average, in many cases below that of the innovation leaders, and almost always below the level of the global top three countries. A benchmarking focus on the EU and the EU's leading innovation countries does not go far enough – innovation performance should increasingly be compared in a global context to provide a comprehensive picture of innovation performance and competitiveness.