A study commissioned by ZeroBounce reveals countries most advanced in AI. The study analyses private investments made in the last decade, the number of AI-related start-ups and workforce-related criteria such as the rate of AI specialists and related job postings. The data for the study was collected from reports by Statista, GlobalData, and Visual Capitalist. The final ranking is based on the size of private investments made within the last decade.
US, China and UK
The country that is the most advanced in AI is the US with $335,2 billion in private investments made over the last decade. There are 5,500 AI start-ups created in the US, and in 2024, people interested in AI can find 71,000 related vacancies.
China is second in the ranking of the countries, advancing AI the fastest, with $103.5 billion in investments. This was three times less than the US. While there are fewer AI-related start-ups and vacancies in China, there are more AI specialists in the general workforce. This represented 0.64% of all people working in China.
The UK is third, with $22.2 billion in AI investments. In 2023, the investments totalled $3.78 billion, one-sixth of the country’s investment for the last decade. Compared to India, the UK founded twice as few start-ups, totalling 727.
Israel, Canada and Germany
Israel takes the fourth place, spending $12.83 billion on AI innovations. 442 start-ups related to artificial intelligence were founded in Israel, almost 300 less than in the UK. However, the country has the highest concentration of AI talent compared to the total workforce with 1.13%.
Canada closely follows Israel in the list of the countries most advanced in AI. It was in fifth place and invested $10.35 billion in private projects in 2023. Canada spent a little more than Israel on AI, $1.61 billion. In total, AI-related job postings in Canada make up 1.05% of all vacancies, the third-highest rate in the ranking.
Germany ranks sixth, investing $10.35 billion into AI technologies. In the last year, Germany was more active with AI investments than Canada or Israel, spending $1.91 billion. There were fewer start-ups connected to artificial intelligence here than in Canada. However, there are still over 4,600 open vacancies this year alone.
India, France, South Korea and Singapore
India is in seventh place, with its AI investments totaling $9.85 billion over the last decade. The country offers more jobs related to AI than Canada and has more start-ups than Germany, with 338.
France takes eighth place, investing $8.31 billion into the AI industry. France spent more money on AI in the last year and also has more AI start-ups than India. However, it is still over a billion dollars behind. Currently, AI specialists in France make up 1.07% of the total workforce, getting ahead of most countries in this ranking.
South Korea is ninth, with private investors investing $7.25 billion in AI technologies. Currently, South Korea has the smallest number of open vacancies in the top 10, but the country still spent over $1.3 billion on future advancements.
Singapore closes the ranking of the countries most advanced in AI, with tenth place and $6.25 billion. This was 50 times less than the US. Similar to France, Singapore has 1.07% AI specialists in the total workforce but only 193 start-ups.
ZeroBounce Founder and CEO Liviu Tanase said, “AI technology is advancing rapidly worldwide. This is driven by significant private investments and a growing number of AI startups. Over the past decade, billions have been invested, and we see a substantial increase in AI-related job opportunities and innovation. Companies are developing skilled AI workforces to stay competitive. As various industries will continue to integrate AI, these investments and developments will play a pivotal role in shaping the future of global technology.”
Methodology
In order to provide a detailed report on AI development in different countries, the study took into account financial as well as workforce-related information. Data about private investments was taken from Statista, while the number of start-ups created in each country was recorded by GlobalData. In addition, the study also takes into account job vacancies related to AI and the number of AI specialists in the workforce of each country. Finally, the study also provides a general AI index calculated by Tortoise Media for the context.
Enterprise Times: What this means for business
It is not entirely unexpected that the US leads the international ranking for investment in AI. Silicon Valley is home to many of the world’s largest technology companies. US companies and developers tend to be in the vanguard of the AI revolution. However, the screaming statistic in the report is the number of AI specialists and related job postings. In the US, this is estimated at 71,000 related vacancies. This still dwarfs the combined job postings of the other nine of countries in the study at 56,332.
AI can undertake ‘human intelligence’ tasks, like perceiving, learning, creativity, and problem-solving. The research appears to suggest that US companies are well on the road to embedding AI into every fabric of business operations. Given the technology’s wide and fundamental potential, AI has and will continue to fundamentally change how we all work, rest, and play in the digital age. The potential uses for AI are seemingly endless.
The research also highlights countries’ need for people with the data skills needed to push forward the AI revolution. Many analysts have already suggested the immediate need for digital upskilling to be recognised. Some enterprises, governments and universities around the world are working to close the gap. But there is far less appreciation of the need for data literacy – the ability to read, analyse, work and communicate with data. The ZeroBounce research shows that AI job postings across all countries will continue to rise as technology gets further embedded in business and society.
