The United States has overtaken Singapore and the Netherlands to become the world’s most AI-ready economy, while American companies continue to dominate the global corporate AI rankings. However, a new study revealed by the International Institute for Management Development (IMD) on Thursday found that a country’s digital and AI readiness does not necessarily translate into stronger AI capabilities among companies headquartered there.

IMD’s 2026 World Digital and AI Ranking placed the US first, followed by Singapore and the Netherlands, reflecting the strength of the American technological ecosystem, investment, innovation, research and commercial capacity.

In a separate assessment of corporate AI capabilities, Nvidia retained its position as the world’s most AI-mature company, ahead of Alphabet, Microsoft, Japan’s SoftBank Group and South Korea’s Samsung Electronics.

The findings highlight a gap between national AI readiness and corporate AI maturity, with some highly digitally developed economies producing relatively few global corporate AI leaders, while companies based in lower-ranked economies have managed to establish themselves among the world’s most advanced AI players.

A related IMD white paper, titled The New Geography of AI Power, examined the two rankings together and found that national conditions alone do not determine how successfully companies develop and deploy artificial intelligence.

“A country’s readiness is neither a ceiling nor a floor for its companies,” said Michael Wade, professor of strategy and digital and director of the Global Center for Digital and AI Transformation at IMD.

Arturo Bris, professor of finance and director of the IMD World Competitiveness Center, said the two rankings should be considered together as national conditions shape what companies can achieve, while major corporations increasingly influence the options available to governments.

National AI readiness

The 2026 World Digital and AI Ranking assessed 70 economies using 88 criteria, comprising 51 statistical indicators and 37 measures from IMD’s Executive Opinion Survey.

The indicators were grouped into five factors: governance, technology and infrastructure, efficiency, workforce development, and values.

The US secured the top position largely on the back of its technological ecosystem, including investment, innovation and research, as well as its commercial capacity.

China, which ranked seventh overall, demonstrated a different development model, combining strong political direction with efficient practices and agility. Despite weaker performance in digital governance indicators, which favor transparent regulation and consumer and citizen protection, China ranked first in efficiency and second in technology and infrastructure.

European economies in the top ten, meanwhile, reflected a different approach centered on consumer protection, fairness and safety.

The Netherlands ranked third overall, followed by Denmark in fourth place, Sweden in sixth and Finland in eighth. Switzerland ranked ninth.

These economies also performed strongly in the digital and AI governance sub-factor, with Finland taking first place, followed by the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden.

Their approach emphasizes classifying AI systems according to risk, assessing them before deployment and ensuring transparency and accountability to those affected by the technology.

The European Union’s AI Act, which is being implemented in phases, represents the most developed example of this regulatory approach and is expected to influence standards beyond Europe.

IMD said the findings suggest that strong governance and regulatory frameworks can help build public confidence in the adoption of AI.

Bris said the ten leading economies differed significantly in their approaches to digital development and AI adoption.

Some rely on private capital and relatively light regulation to encourage investment, while others use state intervention and subsidies to develop strategic industries. A third group prioritizes strong institutions and transparency to build public trust before pursuing wider adoption.

Despite their different approaches, all three groups have managed to reach the top ten of the 2026 ranking.

Corporate AI maturity

At the corporate level, IMD’s 2026 AI Maturity Index identified Nvidia as the world’s leading company in AI-driven business transformation, retaining its position ahead of Alphabet and Microsoft, which ranked second and third respectively.

The index assessed the world’s 330 largest public companies based on their AI capabilities, AI-related investments and patent filings, examining how effectively they use the technology to reshape business strategies, operations and competitive positions.

The rankings showed relatively little change among the leading companies, with 16 of the previous year’s top 20 retaining their positions among the leaders.

However, SoftBank Group and Samsung Electronics entered the top five, displacing Meta Platforms and Amazon.

While US technology companies and core infrastructure providers continued to dominate the top 20, Asian companies made significant gains in the broader rankings.

Asian companies accounted for 22 of the top 50 positions in 2026, compared with 10 in 2025. Their growing presence was supported by their strength in AI-related patents, with Japanese and South Korean companies accounting for 29 percent of identified AI patents, while Chinese companies held another 18 percent.

The index also found that AI maturity was spreading beyond the technology sector.

Consumer durables companies among the 50 most AI-mature businesses increased from two to seven, while the number of capital goods companies rose from two to five. Telecommunications companies also increased their representation from three to six.

However, US companies continued to dominate AI deal value, accounting for 78 percent of the total captured in the index.

Financial services companies lost ground in the top 50, largely because most banks and insurers did not hold AI patents. Pharmaceutical companies also fell behind, despite continued investment in AI, as they were outpaced in demonstrating how prominently the technology featured in their business strategies.

AI investment versus profitability

The study also found that companies with higher AI maturity tended to be larger than their industry peers, but were not necessarily more profitable.

According to Wade, the top 20 AI-mature companies recorded a lower three-year average profit rate of 24.8 percent, compared with 28.5 percent for companies in the bottom tier.

The study identified a weak but statistically significant inverse relationship between AI maturity and profitability across the full ranking.

Wade said one possible explanation was that companies investing more aggressively in AI capabilities were sacrificing some near-term profitability in pursuit of longer-term growth, while financial markets continued to reward those investments.

The combined findings of the two rankings suggest that strong national digital infrastructure, governance and technological capabilities do not automatically translate into corporate AI leadership.

For businesses, the challenge is to turn national advantages and AI investments into sustainable competitive capabilities, particularly as geopolitical fragmentation and competition over technology reshape the global AI landscape.

Wade said companies seeking to remain competitive would need strategies that enable them to develop what they claim to offer, maintain sufficient control over their technology infrastructure to withstand a fragmenting global environment, and earn the trust of people affected by their AI systems.

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