Alphabet and Meta now spend nearly as much on R&D as the 10 largest drugmakers combined. South Korea is closing in on Germany, while Taiwan could edge past France by 2028 as semiconductor research expands. The 2026 Global R&D Funding Forecast projects spending across the world’s 40 largest R&D economies at $4.43 trillion this year, rising to roughly $5 trillion in 2028 at purchasing-power parity. It examines how corporate AI investment and mounting debt are shaping that growth, assesses 25 leading research hubs and introduces R&D World’s 100 most innovative companies of 2026.