Switzerland drops to ninth in digital competitiveness ranking

Switzerland has dropped six places in one year, moving from third in 2025 to ninth in the 2026 IMD digital competitiveness ranking. The institute points to weaker results on newer factors linked to artificial intelligence, especially investment in the technology. The ranking was reported on November 11, 2026, by Keystone-SDA.

The fall puts Switzerland outside the top group led by the United States, Singapore and the Netherlands. Denmark, Canada, Sweden and Finland also appear ahead of Switzerland in the ranking. South Korea rounds out the top ten. Switzerland has often placed on the podium in recent years, making the latest result a clear reversal from its previous position.

IMD’s assessment ties the change to the growing weight of AI in digital competitiveness. For Switzerland, the ranking signals that strengths in digital performance do not automatically secure a leading position as the criteria evolve. The institute singled out investment in AI as one area where the country trails leading economies.

AI investment is a specific weak point in Switzerland’s ranking. IMD said Switzerland performs less well than other countries on new factors linked to artificial intelligence, particularly investment in the technology. That assessment places the issue within the broader shift in how the institute measures digital competitiveness: AI has become a factor that can affect a country’s overall position.

The ranking puts the United States first, with Singapore second and the Netherlands third. Denmark, Canada, Sweden and Finland follow before Switzerland. The sequence highlights the range of economies now ahead of Switzerland in the table, from North America to Europe and Asia.

Switzerland’s slide from third to ninth does not, by itself, describe every part of its digital economy. But IMD’s explanation is direct: the country’s performance on AI-related factors is weaker than that of other economies, and investment is one of the areas where it trails leaders. The result makes AI spending a central part of the explanation for this year’s lower standing.

The United States leads the ranking through a strong technology ecosystem, with investment, innovation and research among its strengths, alongside economic performance, according to the report. Its first-place position contrasts with Switzerland’s ninth-place result and places the US at the head of the group competing to benefit from AI.

China presents a different profile in IMD’s assessment. The institute describes it as a world leader in efficiency and says it also ranks highly for technology and infrastructure. It identifies digital governance, including transparent regulation for users and citizens, as a weakness.

These country profiles underline that the ranking weighs several conditions around AI, not simply the presence of technology. The US profile combines ecosystem strength with investment, innovation and research. China’s combines efficiency with technology and infrastructure, while governance remains a concern. Switzerland’s result, meanwhile, reflects weaker performance on new AI-related factors, particularly investment. Together, the comparisons show why AI readiness has become part of the broader contest over digital competitiveness.

Arturo Bris says economies will gain from AI when they make it practical to test, implement and govern. Bris, a professor of finance and director of the IMD World Competitiveness Centre, said the leading economies would be those that make AI cheaper to experiment with, safer to implement, clearer to govern and easier to integrate. He also pointed to reliability in the eyes of customers, partners, regulators and workers.

Bris described AI as a systemic component of competitiveness, one that can expand only when the surrounding system is ready. His comments broaden the picture beyond investment alone: implementation, governance, integration and trust also shape whether economies can make use of the technology.

For Switzerland, the ranking’s immediate message is that AI-related factors are now weighing on its digital standing. The country was third in 2025 and ninth in 2026, while the United States took first place. IMD’s emphasis on investment and the conditions Bris outlined frame the challenge facing Switzerland as it seeks to regain ground in digital competitiveness.