Hungary at cutting edge of high-tech manufacturing

Photo: MTI

Hungary is at the cutting edge of high-tech manufacturing, the technology and industry minister said on Sunday, citing fresh global innovation rankings.

The 2022 Global Innovation Index puts Hungary in fifth place when it comes to high-tech manufacture in proportion to total output, while the country advanced three places overall compared with the previous year, László Palkovics said in a statement. The World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) publishes the Global Innovation Index annually, comparing the innovation performance of 132 economies this year.

Overall, Hungary is ranked 34th, while it is in 23rd place in terms of scientific and technological performance in seven subject areas examined. Hungary is in the top 10 in terms of the complexity of production and export, as well as the high-tech export ratio.

Also, the European Commission’s 2022 European Innovation Scoreboard ranks Hungary at the top of the “emerging innovators” category, citing the export of high-tech products, putting Hungary in third after Switzerland and Slovakia. When it comes to support for business research and development, Hungary ranks seventh among the EU member states, according to the scoreboard.

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The government, said Palkovics, has launched a “technological revolution” over the past few years aimed at ensuring sustainable growth and improved competitiveness, as well as boosting industrial performance in knowledge-based, future-oriented sectors.

By 2030, Hungary aims to become the single European centre of battery manufacture and, alongside Germany, the top developer of autonomous vehicles, the statement said. Collaborations with top innovators centre around 5G, AI, drone technology and the hydrogen economy, it added.