The International Finance Forum (IFF) issued its Global AI Competitiveness Index Project to build a comprehensive system for assessing AI competitiveness, while evaluating and comparing various countries’ AI strength and development potential. The IFF and world's top Big Data analyst Deep Knowledge Group applied the metrics of technical development/applications, human capital, policy/regulation, and market acceptance/infrastructure to jointly conduct their study. This first chapter, Global AI Enterprises, discusses the top countries by number and density of AI companies and startups, and their funding. This first part thereof discusses company numbers.

As regards overall numbers, the IFF study scrutinized the 100 countries home to artificial intelligence (AI) companies. Some 55,000 AI firms existed worldwide as of October 2024, it found. The United States boasts over 36 percent of world AI companies. The top 10 countries house 73 percent of global AI firms, per the report, with the US first at 20,298. India, with 4,044, was a distant second, while the United Kingdom was third at 3,795.

The US lead stems from its competitive advantage since the advent of the information technology (IT) and internet revolutions and its deep accumulation in computer science since the 1940s, per the report, which also cited the country’s global top computer science research institutions, AI-friendly immigration policy, venture capital system, Nasdaq, high salaries and career development scope, along with closely integrated industry, academia, and research that provides a “solid technical reserve for big technology companies.” Silicon Valley stars of the ilk of Elon Musk, and Sam Altman also buttress US predominance.

The US further boasts the world's top AI industry ecosystem and a complete industrial chain - from chips to cloud computing infrastructure - while a wealth of business data trains AI companies’ models. A large domestic market with rich application scenarios quickly advances AI commercialization. These elements foster a “virtuous cycle” that confers the lead on the US in the AI race.

India, meanwhile, devised its national AI strategy in 2018, and will invest INR700 billion (USD9.5 billion) in AI research and development over five years in healthcare, agriculture, education, smart cities, and smart mobility, an AI portal to spur knowledge sharing and collaboration, tax breaks for AI startups, and the setup of an INR10 billion AI fund. India will also train 1 million AI professionals by 2025 and establish 20 centers in cooperation with top technology companies, build nationwide computing infrastructure, establish innovation centers in major cities, and provide high-speed internet. India’s AI ​​sector’s market size is set to reach USD20 billion by 2025.

The UK also performs well numerically, thanks to policies, academic resources, industrial foundation, talent, and international cooperation. Its government has pledged to invest GBP950 million (USD1.23 billion) into AI research and development over the next four years and formed an AI commission to draft a strategy to assure the UK's global lead, apply AI in various industries over the next decade and lure investment. The country’s University of Cambridge, University of Oxford, and University College London lead in AI research. Oxford and Cambridge rank in the world’s top 10 in computer science, have cultivated many high-end AI talents, and have promoted AI’s commercial application in collaboration with enterprises, e.g., Cambridge researchers founded world-leading AI firm DeepMind. The UK also enjoys outstanding AI infrastructure and boasts several top companies - Graphcore, Stability AI, and Quantinuum, while Babylon Health and Benevolent AI apply AI in disease diagnosis and drug development. Fintech companies Revolut and Monzo use AI in risk management and customer service. These successes show the potential extensive application of the technology in different fields.

The UK has among the highest concentrations of AI talent in Europe with 100,000-plus AI professionals. Its visa program attracts top talent and it is speeding deployment of fifth-generation wireless networks (5G) and building centers to provide computing power for AI research and development and application. Two-thirds of Britons believe AI will positively impact society.

UK AI enterprise development benefits from many factors: policy support, academic resources, industrial foundation, talent pool, data and technical infrastructure, and social and cultural environment that constitute an ecosystem conducive to the innovation and application of AI. The UK’s AI firms are forecast to maintain strong future momentum.