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Data report

North America spends the most on research, Asia-Pacific exports the hardware, and South Asia exports the services

The three parts of the technology economy sit in three different places. North America spends 3.3% of GDP on research and development, more than any other region. Asia-Pacific earns 26.4% of its goods exports from ICT hardware, against 4.2% in Europe. And South Asia earns 47.8% of its service exports from ICT services, the highest share in the world by a distance.

AuthorTomasz WierzbickiData & Market Research
Edited byNiels Abrahamsen
Fact-checked bySebastiaan Smits
Published23 August 2026
Updated26 August 2026
Evidence42 data points3 sources

Key takeaways

5 findings
  1. 01North America spends 3.3% of GDP on R&D, Asia-Pacific 2.8% and Europe 2.1%.
  2. 02ICT hardware is 26.4% of goods exports in Asia-Pacific and 4.2% in Europe, a factor of 6.3.
  3. 03South Asia earns 47.8% of its service exports from ICT services.
  4. 04No region leads on more than one of the three measures.
  5. 05The R&D spread between North America and South Asia is 2.7 points of GDP.
01

What each region spends on research and development

Data points 1–7
  1. 01

    North America: 3.3% of GDP spent on research and development in 2023. (World Bank, 2023)Verified

  2. 02

    Asia-Pacific: 2.8% of GDP spent on research and development in 2023. (World Bank, 2023)Verified

  3. 03

    Europe: 2.1% of GDP spent on research and development in 2023. (World Bank, 2023)Verified

  4. 04

    The Middle East and North Africa: 1.3% of GDP spent on research and development in 2021. (World Bank, 2023)Verified

  5. 05

    Latin America: 0.7% of GDP spent on research and development in 2023. (World Bank, 2023)Verified

  6. 06

    South Asia: 0.6% of GDP spent on research and development in 2020. (World Bank, 2023)Verified

  7. 07

    North America spends 5.5 times the share of GDP that South Asia does. (World Bank, 2023)Verified

02

Who exports the hardware

Data points 8–15
  1. 08

    Asia-Pacific: ICT goods are 26.4% of total goods exports in 2024. (World Bank, 2024)Verified

  2. 09

    North America: ICT goods are 7.4% of total goods exports in 2024. (World Bank, 2024)Verified

  3. 10

    Latin America: ICT goods are 5.6% of total goods exports in 2024. (World Bank, 2024)Verified

  4. 11

    South Asia: ICT goods are 5.5% of total goods exports in 2024. (World Bank, 2024)Verified

  5. 12

    The Middle East and North Africa: ICT goods are 4.5% of total goods exports in 2023. (World Bank, 2024)Verified

  6. 13

    Europe: ICT goods are 4.2% of total goods exports in 2024. (World Bank, 2024)Verified

  7. 14

    Sub-Saharan Africa: ICT goods are 0.4% of total goods exports in 2024. (World Bank, 2024)Verified

  8. 15

    ICT hardware exports are concentrated in Asia-Pacific to a degree no other technology measure matches. (World Bank, 2024)Directional

03

Who exports the services

Data points 16–22
  1. 16

    South Asia: ICT services are 47.8% of total service exports in 2025. (World Bank, 2025)Verified

  2. 17

    The Middle East and North Africa: ICT services are 15.7% of total service exports in 2024. (World Bank, 2025)Verified

  3. 18

    Europe: ICT services are 11.4% of total service exports in 2025. (World Bank, 2025)Verified

  4. 19

    Asia-Pacific: ICT services are 10.6% of total service exports in 2025. (World Bank, 2025)Verified

  5. 20

    North America: ICT services are 9.0% of total service exports in 2025. (World Bank, 2025)Verified

  6. 21

    Latin America: ICT services are 8.7% of total service exports in 2025. (World Bank, 2025)Verified

  7. 22

    Sub-Saharan Africa: ICT services are 5.8% of total service exports in 2024. (World Bank, 2025)Verified

04

The countries that make the hardware

Data points 23–32
  1. 23

    Hong Kong SAR, China: ICT goods are 61.5% of goods exports in 2024. (World Bank, 2024)Verified

  2. 24

    Philippines: ICT goods are 43.6% of goods exports in 2024. (World Bank, 2024)Verified

  3. 25

    Viet Nam: ICT goods are 35.9% of goods exports in 2023. (World Bank, 2024)Verified

  4. 26

    Malaysia: ICT goods are 35.2% of goods exports in 2024. (World Bank, 2024)Verified

  5. 27

    Singapore: ICT goods are 34.6% of goods exports in 2024. (World Bank, 2024)Verified

  6. 28

    Korea, Rep.: ICT goods are 28.3% of goods exports in 2024. (World Bank, 2024)Verified

  7. 29

    Malta: ICT goods are 24.3% of goods exports in 2024. (World Bank, 2024)Verified

  8. 30

    Cayman Islands: ICT goods are 21.3% of goods exports in 2024. (World Bank, 2024)Verified

  9. 31

    China: ICT goods are 21.3% of goods exports in 2024. (World Bank, 2024)Verified

  10. 32

    Andorra: ICT goods are 20.1% of goods exports in 2023. (World Bank, 2024)Verified

05

The countries that fund the research

Data points 33–42
  1. 33

    Israel: 6.3% of GDP spent on R&D in 2023. (World Bank, 2023)Verified

  2. 34

    Liechtenstein: 6.0% of GDP spent on R&D in 2023. (World Bank, 2023)Verified

  3. 35

    Korea, Rep.: 4.9% of GDP spent on R&D in 2023. (World Bank, 2023)Verified

  4. 36

    Sweden: 3.6% of GDP spent on R&D in 2023. (World Bank, 2023)Verified

  5. 37

    Japan: 3.4% of GDP spent on R&D in 2023. (World Bank, 2023)Verified

  6. 38

    United States: 3.4% of GDP spent on R&D in 2023. (World Bank, 2023)Verified

  7. 39

    Austria: 3.3% of GDP spent on R&D in 2023. (World Bank, 2023)Verified

  8. 40

    Belgium: 3.3% of GDP spent on R&D in 2023. (World Bank, 2023)Verified

  9. 41

    Germany: 3.2% of GDP spent on R&D in 2023. (World Bank, 2023)Verified

  10. 42

    Switzerland: 3.2% of GDP spent on R&D in 2023. (World Bank, 2023)Verified

—

Methodology

Figures come from the World Bank World Development Indicators, series GB.XPD.RSDV.GD.ZS (R&D expenditure as a share of GDP), TX.VAL.ICTG.ZS.UN (ICT goods exports as a share of goods exports) and BX.GSR.CCIS.ZS (ICT service exports as a share of service exports), last updated 2026-07-13. R&D coverage lags the other two by one to three years and the reference year is stated on every figure. Regional figures are the World Bank aggregate for that region. Nothing here is modelled or adjusted by us.

Every data point carries one of three labels. Verified means the figure was read from the named primary source. Directional means sources agree on the trend but measure it differently. Single source means one publisher reported it and nobody has corroborated it. We would rather label a number honestly than round it into confidence it has not earned.

—

Sources & references

3 datasets cited
GB.XPD.RSDV.GD.ZSWorld Bank · 2023TX.VAL.ICTG.ZS.UNWorld Bank · 2024BX.GSR.CCIS.ZSWorld Bank · 2025
  • World Bank — Research and development expenditure (% of GDP) (GB.XPD.RSDV.GD.ZS). Period 2023, published 2026-07-13. View the dataset.
    World Development Indicators. Regional figures are the World Bank aggregate for that region, which weights every country in it by population unless the indicator says otherwise.
  • World Bank — ICT goods exports (% of total goods exports) (TX.VAL.ICTG.ZS.UN). Period 2024, published 2026-07-13. View the dataset.
    World Development Indicators. Regional figures are the World Bank aggregate for that region, which weights every country in it by population unless the indicator says otherwise.
  • World Bank — ICT service exports (% of service exports, BoP) (BX.GSR.CCIS.ZS). Period 2025, published 2026-07-13. View the dataset.
    World Development Indicators. Regional figures are the World Bank aggregate for that region, which weights every country in it by population unless the indicator says otherwise.
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Cite this report

Updated 7 September 2026
APA

The Knowledge Engineers. (2026, 7 September 2026). Where Technology Is Made: Exports and R&D by Region. https://theknowledgeengineers.com/reports/technology-production-by-region

MLA

The Knowledge Engineers. “Where Technology Is Made: Exports and R&D by Region.” The Knowledge Engineers, 7 September 2026, https://theknowledgeengineers.com/reports/technology-production-by-region.

Chicago

The Knowledge Engineers. “Where Technology Is Made: Exports and R&D by Region.” 7 September 2026. https://theknowledgeengineers.com/reports/technology-production-by-region.

This URL is permanent. To cite one figure, use its number: “data point 07”.