Why Eli Lilly, Amazon And Mastercard Headline Our New Most Innovative Large Companies List

The very notion of “Innovative” is, of course, inherently subjective. But with this new list, Forbes relies solely on hard data that capture dozens of different indicators of sector-leading innovation no matter their industry or age.

The ranking is driven by Forbes’ new Innovation Index™, which measures innovation based on volume of patents and intellectual property, research focus, investor confidence, return on equity, media and social media sentiment from data partner SignalAI, and evaluation of company news and statements by synthetic audiences (more on that later). The Index analyzes every company in the Standard & Poor’s 500 list, with the top 100 making the Forbes list.

Led by pharma giant Eli Lilly (No. 1) and tech titan Apple (No. 2), the top 10 includes sectors as diverse as manufacturing (Boeing, No. 8) and financial services (Mastercard). But whether it's through R&D investments, market and consumer confidence, and/or the creation of new IP, they all outpace their peers in driving America's business engines forward.

Read the full story on Forbes:

Subscribe to FORBES

Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more:

Stay Connected

Forbes newsletters

Forbes on Facebook

Forbes Video on Twitter

Forbes Video on Instagram

More From Forbes

Forbes covers the intersection of entrepreneurship, wealth, technology, business and lifestyle with a focus on people and success.