In 2025 intangible investments exceeded the threshold of 10 trillion dollars for the first time, with growth more than three times faster than investments in tangible assets. The United States alone accounts for almost half of the total, while Italy currently lags behind in this crucial race for the development of global economies. This is stated in the third edition of the World Intangible Investment Highlights report, produced by the World Intellectual Property Organization (Wipo) and the Luiss Business School.
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The analysis of 29 advanced economies
The Report analyzes 29 high and middle-income economies, which together represent about 57% of the global GDP. The growth of investments in software, data, research and development, but also brands, organizational capital and other intellectual property-based assets, continued last year, while spending on machinery and buildings slowed down, held back by tighter financing conditions and economic uncertainty.
Between 2020 and 2025 intangible investments increased on average by 5.5% per year, compared to a 3.2% increase recorded by tangible investments, such as in machinery, semiconductors and components. These investments today represent on average almost 13% of the GDP of the analyzed economies, confirming a structural and lasting change in the composition of investments. We are facing a “recomposition of capital allocation,” notes Cecilia Jona-Lasinio, Full Professor of Applied Economics at Luiss Business School and project coordinator.
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The recomposition of investments
One of the most interesting aspects emerging from the report is that “investments in intangible assets, essentially investments in knowledge, are considered increasingly relevant to compete in global markets – suggests the professor -. This shift is the result of major ongoing transformations, first and foremost the digital one, because to benefit from it it is necessary to invest in intangible assets.”
However, Italy currently remains at the bottom of the ranking of the countries analyzed, placing itself far from not only the United States but also the main European competitors. In the countries at the top of the ranking, the share of spending on intangible assets as a percentage of GDP was 16-17% in 2025, while in Italy it stops at 9%. Comparing investments in intangible assets to those in physical capital, the Report distinguishes some countries more advanced in the transition to a knowledge economy. Italy lags behind, with a highly predominant share of investments in instrumental and physical goods.
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