India tops technology innovation confidence index, says KPMG survey

Mumbai: Technology executives worldwide believe that the United States, China and India are the top three countries with the potential to drive technology breakthroughs that will have a global impact in the next four years, according to the Global Technology Innovation survey by KPMG.

In April – June 2013, KPMG, US surveyed 811 business executives globally, whose organizations were focused on the technology space, 34 per cent of the respondents were in the Americas, 37 per cent in Asia Pacific, and 30 per cent in Europe, Middle East and Africa. Twenty-five percent of respondents were from the United States, 12 percent from China and 9 percent from India.

This year, KPMG’s survey debuts a confidence index gauging each country’s prospects for tech innovation. The index is based on tech leaders in each market rating their country on ten success factors including talent, infrastructure, incentives, and capital. 

On the basis of availability of talent, development of disruptive technology breakthroughs, mentoring and access to innovation network (Founders, CEOs, etc.), access to alliances or partnerships, supporting ecosystem (law firms, VCs, etc.), access to capital, education system, ability to drive customer growth and government incentives, India ranks number one with an index of 72, Israel ranks second with an index of 71, United States ranks third with an index of 65 and China ranks fourth with an index of 64 in the Technology confidence innovation index.

“In the field of technology, India’s farsightedness and focus on innovation have helped it seize the third spot in the 2013 Global Tech Innovation Index. That’s not all; India’s topping the Confidence Index is a confirmation of business leaders’ faith in the country’s technological capabilities. Despite several concerns on data privacy and local technological infrastructure, the outlook for the sector is largely positive. The government can assist the technology sector by enabling easier access to capital through investor friendly policies and strengthening IP protection laws” said Pradeep Udhas, Head of Technology and Markets, KPMG in India.

In a change from last year’s survey, 37 percent of the respondents said the United States shows the most promise for disruptive breakthroughs, while China ranked second with 24 percent, and India came third with 10 percent, followed by Korea (7 percent), Japan (6 percent) and Israel (6 percent).  The US and China had tied for the top spot in the 2012 survey. 

Survey respondents’ belief in the US as the top tech innovator in the global ranking also translated to fewer executives (33 percent) than in 2012 (44 percent) saying it is likely that the technology innovation center of the world would shift from Silicon Valley to another country in the next four years. Not surprisingly, only 25 percent of the US respondents believed the shift is likely. However, 64 percent of respondents from India predicted the center will shift, compared to 48 percent last year. 49 percent of respondents from China predicted a shift, compared to 60 percent last year. Among respondents who believed the center would shift, China again is seen as most likely to become the leading innovation center followed by India.