Croatia tops a list of countries that will be left behind if they do not invest in AI, with the lowest overall score, signalling a major gap in AI development.
AI readiness is the product of four key dimensions: digital infrastructure, human capital, technological innovation, and legal frameworks. Often culture and data readiness are the most challenging areas underpinning the success or failure of these dimensions.
This comes from a recent study conducted by Zero Bounce, which analysed data across 40 countries to identify the ones that will be “left behind” if they fail to invest in AI. Key metrics such as population rates, venture capital investment in AI per capita, AI readiness scores, patent applications related to AI, and companies operating in the AI industry per capita were used.
The research provides a comprehensive ranking based on a compound score reflecting each country’s overall AI adoption and innovation capacity.
The most impacted countries were identified as:
- Croatia
- Argentina
- Greece
- Turkey
- Hungary
- Slovakia
- Latvia
- Chile
- New Zealand
- Poland
As indicated above, Croatia leads the ranking of countries that will be “left behind” if they do not invest in AI, driven by its low venture capital investment of $25.70 per capita. The country has the lowest overall score of 84.9, highlighting the urgent need for investments to reach its full potential in the AI landscape.
Argentina ranks second due to its low AI readiness index of 68.57. The country has a deficient number of patent applications related to AI per capita, pointing at a lack of innovation and interest in the sector.
In third place, Greece struggles with the second lowest venture capital investment at $5.40 per capita and an AI readiness index of 67.28. As one of the countries that could be “left behind” without increased investment in AI, Greece struggles with patent applications related to AI, resulting in an overall score of 85.5.
Turkey comes fourth, with a low venture capital investment of $6.60 per capita and an AI readiness index of 60.73. The contrast between these low indicators and Turkey’s large population of over 84 million shows a gap in developing essential AI infrastructure, exposing Turkey to stagnation risks with an overall score of 85.6.
Hungary ranks fifth. Its low per capita number of patent applications related to AI reflects a lack of activity in the sector. With a $45.20 per capita capital investment and an AI readiness index of 78.57, its overall score of potential decline risk is 86.
Slovakia, sixth on the list, has the second-lowest AI readiness index (60.30) and the lowest venture capital investment ($1.20 per capita). Latvia ranks seventh. It has a venture capital investment of $164.70 per capita and an AI readiness index of 84.80.
Chile, ranked eighth, has an AI readiness index of 72.55, indicating a considerable gap in the sector. Chile has a venture capital investment of around $190.20 per capita and inadequate efforts to leverage resources for effective AI development based on the patent application rate. New Zealand is ninth among, with the third-lowest AI readiness index of 65.46.
Poland rounds out the top ten countries that will fall behind without investments in the AI sector. The country faces challenges due to its low venture capital investment of $31.00 per capita and the low number of patent applications related to AI activities, with an overall readiness score of 88.1.
