World Intellectual Property Report: Pace of Innovation Diffusion Reaches Historical Heights, But Access, Usage and Capability Gaps Remain

Geneva, February 17, 2026
PR/2026/946

New technologies are spreading across borders at unprecedented pace and gaps are narrowing in how intensively countries are using the innovations, the latest World Intellectual Property Report (WIPR) 2026, Technology on the Move finds.

The report draws on 250 years of historical data on technology use and five decades of patent scientific publication data to identify shifts that are reshaping global innovation dynamics and transforming economic opportunity. The report highlights the role of policymakers, who must focus on promoting invention as well as ensuring diffusion.

This report shows that faster diffusion of technology, coupled with closing usage gaps, can enable economies to accelerate economic growth. But this will not happen by chance — it requires deliberate and coordinated investments in human and institutional capacities, modern infrastructure, and robust intellectual property systems. By strengthening the ability of countries to absorb new technologies and turn ideas into tangible outcomes, policymakers can unlock innovation-driven growth for the long term.

WIPO Director General Daren Tang

Access WIPR 2026

Among the key findings:

From adoption lags to real-time diffusion

Historical technologies, including the telegraph and the automobile, took decades to reach global markets. In sharp contrast, today’s connected global economy and mature digital infrastructure allow innovations to be accessed almost instantly worldwide. The report shows that the world is entering an era in which technological ideas travel faster than they did decades ago and digital technologies can reach users in virtually every country within days rather than decades.

Convergence in usage

Advanced economies have long been early adopters, sometimes decades ahead of others. The report finds that newer technologies show rapid convergence in both adoption speed and usage intensity. Asia stands out, with some countries now using certain digital technologies more intensively than advanced economies, reversing historic patterns.

Faster flow of knowledge

Patent citation analysis shows that international knowledge flows have doubled in speed over the past 50 years.

By 2020, the time gap between domestic and international patent citations had nearly vanished, signaling that geography is no longer a major barrier to the global spread of ideas. Despite this rapid exchange across borders, the transition from scientific discovery to innovation continues to take time, averaging roughly a decade.

At the same time, innovation leadership remains highly concentrated, led by the United States, Western Europe, and Japan, with China playing an increasingly prominent role.

Four factors consistently shape diffusion outcomes

The report highlights four factors that determine how quickly and broadly technologies spread:

1. Technology characteristics – Modular, low-cost, infrastructure-light technologies diffuse fastest, while high-capital, system-dependent technologies spread more slowly.
2. Information flows – Digital platforms, and increasingly AI, dramatically lower the cost of learning and enable rapid uptake when other conditions align.
3. Absorptive capacity – Education, skills, R&D institutions, and technical capabilities determine whether countries can adapt technologies to local needs.
4. Public policy and IP systems – Regulation, interoperability standards, infrastructure investment, and balanced IP frameworks shape both the speed and breadth of diffusion.

Case Studies Spotlight:

The WIPR focuses on three case studies to reveal insights on technology diffusion in the agricultural, clean and digital technologies.

Agriculture: Regulation, Local Adaptation and Compatibility with Existing Practices Define Diffusion

Agricultural technologies illustrate the complexity of translating innovation into real-world productivity gains.

Clean technologies: Modular but Slow to Scale

Clean technologies show a highly uneven scaling trajectory. While some innovations are modular and easily replicated, others require deep systems transformation.

Digital Technologies: Infrastructure is the Gatekeeper

Digital technologies spread faster than any other category in the report but risk amplifying existing strengths and weaknesses rather than generating development automatically.