Who Leads, Who Lags, and Who Could Rise – Startup Ecosystem Stars 2025 Report

The Startup Economy in Numbers: $4.2 Trillion, 100,000 New Companies.

That’s what 25 years of venture capital have created since the beginning of the new millennium.

Among these are the new generation of industrial leaders who are replacing incumbents rapidly rather than gradually. The “new economy” continues to produce industry disruptors at a steady pace – nearly 8,000 new scaleups were added just this year.

Yet, if we look at the overall innovation landscape year after year, it remains largely unchanged. About 50% of the world’s innovation economy still has a US ZIP code – more specifically, a Silicon Valley, New York, or Los Angeles address. For much of the globe, with a few exceptions (China, the UK, and Israel), this is not good news: concentration fuels innovation. Where there is more, more will come. Where there is less, the speed and likelihood of growth are slower and more limited.

But there is a “but.” Innovation brings quiet revolutions: nothing happens until everything changes. While the global picture may appear static, a closer look reveals significant shifts. Comparing the Innovation Ecosystem Life Cycle Curve over just ten years (2015 vs. 2025) presents a dramatically different story.

Ten years ago, fewer than 500 startup ecosystems populated the global curve, with the late stages reserved for an exclusive club of 15 tech hubs, heavily concentrated in the US and APAC. Fast forward to 2025: nearly 900 ecosystems now populate the curve. The late stages include 64 ecosystems, 18 of which are outside the US and APAC.

The most interesting insights emerge when we analyze the early stages of the curve. Moving left along the curve, in the Startup and Standup stages, Europe now has the highest number of ecosystems overall. While Europe lags in producing unicorns and large tech hubs, it has built a broad and diversified base. Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa – with very few exceptions – remain largely absent from the main stage. Even in the Startup and Standup stages, they account for only about 10% of ecosystems.

Two key questions remain – now joined by a third:

1. Europe: Is this latent potential waiting to emerge, or is it simply the result of structural fragmentation?
2. Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa: When will the immense innovation potential in these regions finally surface?
3. AI Storm – the elephant in everyone’s room: Will AI unlock new opportunities for these ecosystems, or will it further widen – and radicalize – existing gaps?

Time will tell – and likely sooner rather than later.