The World sa国际传媒 Organization, in collaboration with Italy's Luiss Business School, said on July 9 that countries around the world have turned heavily to non-physical capital over the last decade, especially with the emergence of AI, whereas spending on tangible assets has remained almost flat since 2020.
"We're witnessing a fundamental shift in how economies grow and compete. While businesses have slowed down investing in factories and equipment during uncertain times, they're doubling down on intangible assets," Daren Tang, director of WIPO, said in a published statement.
The share spent on intangible assets grew three times faster in 2024 compared to physical assets, according to the report. This is a long-term trend. From 2008 to 2024, buildings and machinery grew at just 1% annually, while software, databases and organizational capital expanded by 4% compounded annually.
Investments in AI are also having impacts on the tangible economy. Although the impact remains uneven worldwide, the U.S. is clearly in the lead, experiencing a surge in AI-related infrastructure thanks to big players like Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Nvidia and OpenAI, the report says.
--Editing by Alex Hubbard.
For a reprint of this article, please contact reprints@law360.com.
