Why do smart investors and innovators crowd into the same place at the same time? One easy argument is that AI is going to change the game. It likely will. So it makes sense to participate. Disrupt or be disrupted as they say. But what’s the risk associated with all this?

The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) released its 2026 Global Innovation Index last month. It ranks 139 economies on 79 measures of innovation, from research spending to patents to school test scores. The report also tracks where innovation investment is going. Global venture capital rose 28 percent in 2025 to $510 billion, the biggest jump since 2021. But the number of deals fell for the fourth year in a row. READ MORE