General 13. July 2026 · 3 min read

Germany’s Growing Investment in Intangible Assets: What the 2026 WIPO Study Means for IP Protection

Germany is increasingly betting on brainpower over bricks and mortar. According to a recent World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) study highlighted by the German Patent and Trade Mark Office (DPMA), investment in intangible assets—research and development, software, trademarks, and designs—now outpaces spending on traditional tangible assets like buildings and machinery. For businesses, inventors, and IP professionals, this shift signals that intellectual property is no longer a legal afterthought but a core driver of economic value.dpma

The Headline Figures

In 2025, intangible assets accounted for 11.7% of Germany’s gross domestic product, surpassing the 10.4% share attributed to tangible investments such as buildings, machinery, and physical infrastructure . Germany’s combined public and private investment in intangibles reached 727.9 billion US dollars (roughly 640 billion euros), a figure exceeded only by the United States and Japan among the economies studied . China was excluded from the analysis due to a lack of available data .

DPMA President Eva Schewior framed the results as a strong signal for Germany’s competitiveness: “Know-how and IP rights have become more and more crucial for international competitiveness and the global development of prosperity,” she noted, while adding that tangible investment “continues to be of significant importance” .

Inside the WIPO Study

The report, titled “World Intangible Investment Highlights 2026 – Better Data for Better Business and Policy,” was co-published by WIPO and Italy’s Luiss Business School . It analyzed 29 high- and middle-income economies that together represent more than half of global GDP .

Key global findings include:

Since 2008, intangible investment has grown three times faster than tangible investment .
In 2025, global intangible investment surpassed 10 trillion US dollars (around 8.8 trillion euros) .
The modest growth in tangible investment is now driven almost entirely by AI-related physical infrastructure—data centers, semiconductors, and supporting energy systems .

These numbers point to what WIPO describes as a sustainable structural change: intangible assets are steadily overtaking physical ones as the primary engine of value creation .

Where Germany Leads—and Where It Lags

Germany’s intangible investment has grown by an average of 4% per year in real terms since 2015, compared with just 0.1% annual growth for tangible investment . However, performance varies sharply across categories.

Investment category	Germany’s standing
Designs	Strongest growth among seven categories tracked
Trademarks	Second-strongest growth area
Research & development	30.8% of national investment, well above the 20.6% international average
Software & databases	Only 8.2%, below the 17.6% international average

The standout takeaway is Germany’s exceptional commitment to R&D, paired with a notable underinvestment in software and databases relative to global peers—a gap worth watching as digital and AI-driven sectors expand .

Why This Matters for IP Owners and Innovators

The DPMA remains the German center of expertise for all intellectual property rights, covering patents, utility models, trademarks, and registered designs . As the largest national patent office in Europe and the sixth largest worldwide, its roughly 2,800 staff across Munich, Jena, and Berlin support inventors and companies while shaping national, European, and international IP systems .

For businesses, the study underscores a practical reality: protecting intangible assets is increasingly central to competitiveness. The strong growth in German design and trademark investment suggests rising demand for registration and enforcement—areas where early, strategic filing can secure lasting commercial advantage. Companies that treat IP portfolios as strategic assets rather than administrative formalities are positioning themselves for the value-creation model that now defines leading economies.

Key Takeaways

Intangible assets (11.7% of GDP) have overtaken tangible assets (10.4%) in Germany’s economy .
Germany ranks third globally in total intangible investment, behind the US and Japan .
Design and trademark investment are Germany’s fastest-growing IP categories, signaling opportunity for rights holders .
A relative gap in software and database investment highlights room for growth in Germany’s digital economy .