Intangible assets such as intellectual property (IP), software, data, brands and organizational capabilities exert a growing influence on the global economy despite remaining largely invisible to conventional economic measurement frameworks.
With an estimated value of corporate intangible assets approaching USD 100 trillion (see figure 1) in 2025, these assets now exceed the combined GDP of the world’s largest economies.
In the Global Innovation Index (GII), and in this March 2026 GII Innovation Insight post, we collaborate with Brand Finance to put a value on corporate intangible assets. The findings are striking:
- Intangible assets crossed USD 97 trillion in 2025, close to USD 100 trillion, growing 23% from 2024 (see figure 1).
- After a temporary downturn in 2022, global intangible value has rebounded with momentum, growing 28% in 2024 and 23% in 2025.
- This sustained growth marks a 16-fold increase since 1996, driven also by the increasing market valuations of firms.
- Over the past decade, global value of corporate intangible assets has, on average, been equivalent to two-thirds (67%) of global GDP.
Figure 1: Global corporate intangible value (USD trillion), 1996-2025
Source: Authors’ calculations based on WIPO’s Global Innovation Index and Brand Finance Global Intangible Finance Tracker (GIFT) 2025
Intangible assets as a foundation for the global economy
Perhaps the most striking finding emerges when comparing intangible asset value to global GDP. Over the past decade, the global value of corporate intangible assets has, on average, been equivalent to approximately two-thirds (67%) of global GDP. This underscores the growing importance of non-physical assets such as brands, patents, data, and organizational know-how in shaping firm value.
Notably, even during the 2022 market correction, global intangible value remained equivalent to more than half of global GDP. This sustained magnitude aligns with evidence from the WIPO-LBS World Intangible Investment Highlights 2025, which shows that investment in intangible assets tends to be more resilient than tangible investment during periods of crisis and recovers more quickly following economic shocks. Together, these findings reinforce the structurally embedded role of intangible capital in the global economy.
Which economies and firms lead in intangible asset intensity?
This blog identifies the top 5000 global firms by intangible asset ownership and presents an “intangible asset intensity” indicator that measures the proportion of intangible assets in total enterprise value for the top 15 firms per economy.
The United States (US) continues to lead as the most intangible asset-intensive economy, with its top 15 firms’ intangible assets making up 91.8% of the total enterprise value (see table 1). Its most intangible asset-rich firm, NVIDIA Corporation, exemplifies this lead, with its market value driven almost entirely by chip architecture, software ecosystems, and AI capabilities rather than physical assets. Indeed, among the top 10 companies with the highest intangible value, eight are US-based technology giants (including NVIDIA, Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, and others), representing an outsized share of global intangible assets.
European economies also rank high. Ireland (87.1%), the United Kingdom (84%), France (80.6%), Netherlands (79%), Denmark (78.3%), Switzerland (76.7%), and Sweden (75.3%) all exceed 75% intangible intensity. These economies host globally competitive firms across diverse sectors such as professional services (Accenture), pharmaceuticals (AstraZeneca, Roche, Novo Nordisk), luxury brands (LVMH) and semiconductor equipment (ASML).