By IRDG & KPMG · annual since 2023
Ireland's Innovation
Index
Evidence on RDI investment, priorities and barriers.
Produced annually by IRDG and KPMG, Ireland's Innovation Index examines investment, priorities and barriers among companies active in research, development and innovation. Each edition surveys a different cross-section of respondents, so comparisons between years indicate broad patterns rather than change within a fixed panel. The Index is a survey and policy report, rather than a national ranking.
What the Index covers
A practical view of innovation activity in Ireland.
The Index examines how companies are changing investment in research, development and innovation (RDI), using incentives, prioritising technologies and responding to barriers such as budgets, administration and skills.
Investment and project decisions
How RDI spend has changed and what 2026 respondents expect next.
See the investment findings →Tax credits and incentives
How respondents intend to use the higher R&D Tax Credit.
See the tax-credit findings →AI and disruptive technology
Why this has become the fastest-rising strategic priority.
See the AI findings →Skills and delivery barriers
How cost, administration, skills and recruitment constrain delivery.
See the barrier findings →Policy priorities
What the findings imply for incentives and innovation policy.
See the policy findings →Edition archive
Explore previous editions.
Four annual editions, each surveying a new cross-section of companies active in RDI. Every edition page carries its findings, its methodology, its limitations and the full report.
587 responses · fieldwork Mar–Apr 20262026 · current edition
Investment intent, the higher R&D Tax Credit, AI priorities and continuing delivery barriers.
Read the 2026 findings →
556 responses · fieldwork Mar–Apr 20252025
Cost pressure, innovation management maturity, green R&D and the case for an Innovation Tax Credit.
Read the 2025 findings →
496 responses · 434 completed · fieldwork 5 Mar–2 Apr 20242024
Strong investment intentions alongside funding, administration and skills constraints.
Read the 2024 findings →
394 responses · 365 completed · fieldwork 27 Apr–19 May 20232023 · the baseline
The series baseline — investment, supports, talent constraints and seven policy recommendations.
Read the 2023 findings →Additional research
Between editions.
Follow-up studies published alongside the annual series. Their questions and reporting periods differ from the Index, so read them beside the relevant edition rather than as part of the year-to-year comparison.
Ireland's Innovation Index 2024/2025 Pulse Report
A follow-up report exploring companies' research and innovation plans, priorities and use of AI. Read it alongside the annual Innovation Index; its questions and reporting periods differ.
IRDG and KPMGNovember 2024512 responsesPDF 0.5 MB8 pagesA growing evidence base
More companies have taken part each year.
Responses received have grown from 394 in 2023 to 587 in 2026. More participation does not by itself make the sample more representative: each edition captures a new cross-section of companies active in RDI, so movements between years are directional rather than changes within a fixed panel. Completed counts are shown where the report publishes them — 365 in 2023 and 434 in 2024; 2025 and 2026 do not state one.
View the data table
| Category | Value |
|---|---|
| 2023 | 394 |
| 2024 | 496 |
| 2025 | 556 |
| 2026 | 587 |
Responses received per edition. Source — Ireland's Innovation Index editions 2023-2026, IRDG with KPMG. A source discrepancy is on record for 2023: the original edition reports 394 responses while a later retrospective states 396. This series uses the original edition's 394.
Methodology and trust
How to read the findings.
The 2026 edition draws on 587 responses from companies active in research, development and innovation; fieldwork ran March–April 2026. The approved report describes 61% of respondents as Irish-owned, 20% as US-owned multinational subsidiaries and 13% as other foreign-owned subsidiaries, with the balance mixed or undisclosed. Each edition surveys a new cross-section of companies, so year-to-year movements are directional. The full methodology — eligibility, fieldwork dates, question wording, bases and limitations — publishes with each report.
Take part
Contribute to the next Index.
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