The Global INTAN-Invest was spotlighted at the OECD webinar “Intangible assets in the Global Economy: Better Data for Better Policy”

On 16 September 2024, the OECD hosted a webinar on “Intangible Assets in the Global Economy: Better Data for Better Policy”, where the Global INTAN-Invest project was presented by Cecilia Jona-Lasinio, Full Professor of Applied Economics at Luiss Business School (Rome, Italy).

The aim of this webinar was to showcase the World Intangible Investment Highlights, a joint work by F. Bontadini, C. Corrado, C. Fink, A. Grewal, M. Iommi, F. Jaccoud, S. Wunsch-Vincent.  Co-published by the World Intellectual Property Organization and the Luiss Business School, this report serves as the key reference publication for the latest statistics on global investment in intangible assets.

Drawing on the latest release of the Global INTAN-Invest Database, these statistics cover a range of 26 high-income and emerging economies (starting with India), collectively accounting for more than half of the world’s GDP in 2023, with future editions planned to expand this coverage. Given the gaps in existing data, the expansion of such statistics to cover middle-income economies such as India represents a significant advancement for evidence-based policymaking.

In her presentation, Professor Jona-Lasinio emphasized the relevant impact of intangible assets on the global economy, showing that investment in intangible assets has grown three times faster than investment in physical assets over the past 15 years, providing a sizable contribution to economic growth.

The report reveals a critical gap in traditional measurement frameworks, which have struggled to accurately capture the scope and significance of intangible investments. The Global INTAN-Invest Database underscores the essential role of intangible investment in driving innovation, productivity and economic growth. However, our understanding of its size, composition and impact remains limited owing to measurement challenges. About 60 % of investment in intangible assets goes unmeasured as many intangible asset types, such as brands or design, are not recognized as an investment under national accounting frameworks.

Patterns of growth vary depending on the perspective, and the inclusion of intangibles can significantly affect how growth and innovation are perceived. According to the WIPO-Luiss Business School research team, it is necessary to include intangible capital in the analysis to understand modern firms and the performance of dynamic, innovative economies.

The OECD webinar provided an important and timely platform to present the work of the WIPO-Luiss Business School Partnership in bridging the existing knowledge gaps and generating up-to-date global estimates of investment in intangible assets. As intangible assets continue to reshape the global economy, the insights provided by the Global INTAN-Invest project will be instrumental in facilitating evidence-based policymaking worldwide.

This webinar was the first in what we hope will become a broader series of discussions with other key institutions, including the Global INTAN-Invest Steering Committee members, delving deeper into the vital role of intangible assets in powering innovation and economic growth.