The World’s Most Innovative Companies of 2025, According to Forbes

Methodology

Forbes partners with InnovatorsDNA to compute an “innovation premium” for each company, defined as the difference between its market value and the net present value of its existing (non-innovative) businesses. They weight this premium over a multi-year period (heavier weight on recent years) and use it to rank firms by how much investors are effectively betting on their future innovation.

Key takeaways

• The presence of pharmaceutical and biotech firms (Incyte, Regeneron, Vertex, Illumina, Alexion) suggests healthcare innovation is being strongly rewarded by markets.
• Companies outside traditional “tech” (e.g., Monster Beverage, Marriott) show that perceived innovation can also stem from branding, business models, or service delivery.