EU Member States' Progress and Advancement in Innovation Draws Concerns
Sweden has regained its title as the EU's leading innovator, with a significant 12.9 percentage point increase since 2018. This advancement is attributed to improvements in lifelong learning, business Research and Development (R&D) expenditure, and cloud computing.
Ireland now heads the "Strong Innovators" group, following a 13.3 percentage point increase since 2018. Strengths in cloud computing, production-based CO2 productivity, and SME collaboration have propelled Ireland's rise.
The Regional Innovation Scoreboard (RIS) 2025 reveals an uneven regional landscape, with long-term improvements and a narrowing innovation gap between top and bottom-performing regions. Central, Eastern, and Southern Europe are catching up, with some regions performing above the EU average. Notable examples include Praha, Catalunya/Cataluña, País Vasco/Euskadi, Comunidad de Madrid, Comunidad Foral de Navarra, and Comunitat Valenciana.
However, disparities between Northern and Southern Europe persist in the regional scoreboard. Northern and Western Europe dominate among top-performing regions.
All EU countries have boosted their innovation performance since 2018, although progress varies. Ireland and Sweden lead the way, with progress ranging from 0.9 points in Luxembourg to 30 points in Estonia.
The EU's innovation performance has made steady long-term progress, increasing by 12.6 percentage points since 2018. However, the European Innovation Scoreboard (EIS) 2025 shows a slight decline of 0.4 points between 2024 and 2025, according to the Commission.
The EIS reveals significant shifts in national innovation performance, with thirteen Member States improving their score since last year. Malta has seen the largest gain (+7.6 points) among the improving Member States in the latest edition of the EIS.
On the other hand, 82 regions recorded a decline between 2023 and 2025. The latest edition of the EIS has highlighted a decline in collaboration between smaller companies and R&D investment in some EU Member States.
EC vice-president Stéphane Séjourné has emphasised the need to modernise Europe's Single Market and supply chains to remain globally competitive. Simplifying regulations, boosting cross-border digital infrastructure, and fostering partnerships between startups and established businesses are crucial to unlock Europe's full potential, according to the EIS 2025.
The EU countries classified as "Moderate Innovators" on the European Innovation Scoreboard 2025 include Portugal, Czechia, and several others with innovation performance between 70% and 100% of the EU average. Portugal has a score of about 90.7%, and Czechia is at approximately 80% of the EU average.
In conclusion, while Europe's innovation landscape shows mixed progress, there are signs of improvement and narrowing innovation gaps. However, it is clear that more needs to be done to address disparities between regions and to foster collaboration and R&D investment to unlock Europe's full potential.
