BizWorld Updates Monthly Draper Innovation Index Global

Nations Compete to Land in Top Ten of Best Places Globally
to Launch a Startup

Global Innovation Ecosystems Reshuffle — Canada Plummets Out of DII Global Top 10
New Zealand Rises into the Top 10, India Sees Strong Gain
Cyprus, Namibia, Argentina, and Zambia See Largest Gains
Vanuatu, Lebanon, Sint Maarten, and Tunisia Register Largest Declines
Cayman Islands Improves; Turkey Falls
China and Russia Remain Stable

San Mateo, California – BizWorld announces its June 2026 update to the Draper Innovation Index Global (DII Global), which evaluates each nation’s ability to develop, support, and retain entrepreneurs, innovators, startups, and investors. First published in 2021, the DII Global provides the most well-rounded and up-to-date look at entrepreneurial environments across the globe. The June 2026 DII Global includes a number of updates, including: Heritage’s Index of Economic Freedom, DHL’s Global Connectedness Rank, World Intellectual Property Organization’s (WIPO) Global Innovation Index (GII), and inflation data from the World Bank. Despite constantly shifting global instability, many countries continue to drive forward with upgrading their innovation landscapes, helping them climb the DII Global rankings.

“Canada’s abrupt departure from the DII Global Top 10 is a stark reminder that innovation ecosystems require constant care and attention,” said BizWorld Founder Tim Draper. “Unfriendly policy frameworks, stagnant economic growth, and a cooling venture capital environment, particularly in crucial sectors like AI and Machine Learning, have quickly eroded their competitive edge on the global stage. Entrepreneurs thrive when property rights are secure and regulatory burdens are light. Without improving its policies geared toward innovation investment, Canada could continue to fall down the DII Global ranks.

Top Takeaways from the DII Global June 2026 Update

Key Risers: India, Argentina, Cyprus, Namibia, Zambia, Cayman Islands
Key Fallers: Canada, Turkey, Lebanon, Tunisia

• Canada fell out of the DII Global Top 10, finishing 12th. It fell across all three scenarios due to a number of declines, including comparatively weaker performance across most data metrics, but particularly declining AI/Machine Learning venture capital investments.
• New Zealand broke back into the Top 10, moving up from 12th to 10th, as it benefited from above-average AI/Machine Learning venture capital investments and a rising DHL Interconnectedness rank.
• India continued to build upon last month’s strong performance, rising another 5 ranks from 40th to 35th as it posted the strongest gain in AI/Machine Learning venture capital investment growth alongside declining inflation trends.
• Cyprus saw this month’s largest improvement, jumping 20 places to 28th, buoyed by improvements across many updated metrics, especially Heritage’s Index of Economic Freedom and WIPO’s GII.
• Namibia saw this month’s second largest rank gain, rising 19 places to 112th, improving thanks to a rising DHL Interconnectedness, improvements in WIPO’s GII, and healthy growth in AI/Machine Learning-related venture capital investments.
• Argentina tied for this month’s third largest gain, bolstered by both declining inflation trends and a significantly improved Heritage Index of Economic Freedom score.
• Zambia also posted an improvement of 14 places, thanks to declining inflation and improvements in both Heritage’s Index of Economic Freedom and WIPO’s GII.
• Australia (5th), Sweden (6th), Singapore (7th), Netherlands (8th), and Finland (9th) all climbed by 1 rank in the DII Top 10 due to Canada’s retreat.
• Cayman Islands rose from 49th to 42nd thanks primarily to strong performance in AI/Machine Learning venture capital investment growth.
• Vanuatu had this month’s largest decline, falling 15 places to 108th. It was dragged lower by declines in both Heritage’s Index of Economic Freedom and DHL’s Global Interconnectedness ranking.
• Lebanon fell from 166th to 178th in the DII Global due to declines in its Heritage Index of Economic Freedom and below-average currency performance.
• Sint Maarten also fell by 12 places, from 94th to 106th, primarily because of below-average currency performance.
• Tunisia fell from 124th place to 136th as a result of declining AI/Machine Learning venture capital investments and lower scores in both Heritage’s Index of Economic Freedom and DHL’s Global Interconnectedness rank.
• Turkey, suffering from both rising inflation and a decline in its Heritage Index of Economic Freedom score, fell from 122nd to 131st.
• China and Russia both saw their DII Global rankings remain stable.

“This month’s DII Global highlights a definitive trend: nations that embrace economic freedom are seeing immediate dividends and illustrate how critical these foundational economic liberties are to launching successful ventures,” said BizWorld Chief Economic Advisor Dr. Wallace Walrod. “The Heritage Index of Economic Freedom proved to be a major differentiator in June. As we observed with the massive climbs of Cyprus and Argentina, reducing bureaucratic friction and committing to open markets directly correlates with a thriving environment for startups and investors.”

The DII Global will release monthly updates to continually reflect the latest developments in global innovation and entrepreneurship, available here.

About BizWorld

BizWorld.org is a global non-profit organization based in San Mateo, CA, whose mission is to enable youth from all backgrounds to unlock the power of entrepreneurship to create career opportunities, inspire self-reliance, and build confidence that drives economic prosperity globally.     Founded over 25 years ago by Silicon Valley venture capitalist Tim Draper, BizWorld.org programs teach students real-world 21st century skills and leadership that encourage them to become responsible leaders and entrepreneurs of tomorrow. More than 850,000 students in more than 100 countries have participated in BizWorld programs. https://www.bizworld.org/