R&D in Switzerland: structure, scale and the role of electronics

Ahead of Evertiq Expo Zurich, April 23

Unlike countries where electronics or ICT define the industrial narrative, Switzerland’s innovation system is shaped above all by pharmaceuticals, life sciences, precision manufacturing and financial services. Electronics plays a different role: less visible, rarely discussed as a standalone sector, but deeply embedded across industrial value chains.

In a recent analysis, Evertiq explored which countries dominate global R&D spending. The picture was clear: the global map is shaped primarily by the United States and China. But the world does not end with these two giants. The global R&D landscape is far broader, shaped not only by major powers but also by medium-sized and smaller countries, each contributing its own piece to the ecosystem. Against this background, Switzerland emerges as an interesting case. On the occasion of Evertiq Expo in Zurich, the country is examined more closely. Is its internal structure really so different from that of other European countries?

In the Global Innovation Index 2025, Switzerland once again ranked first worldwide, reflecting not only its overall innovation performance but also the scale and structure of its R&D system. In 2023, total R&D expenditure reached CHF 25.9 billion, with business enterprises accounting for roughly 69% of R&D activity and higher education institutions for a further 28%. Around 150,000 people were employed in R&D-related roles. Corporate R&D spending alone amounted to approximately CHF 18 billion, with pharmaceuticals remaining the single largest investing sector. In relative terms, Switzerland’s business R&D expenditure corresponds to more than 2% of GDP, placing it among Europe’s most R&D-intensive economies. Yet this strength is highly concentrated: the innovation landscape is dominated by life sciences, precision manufacturing and advanced industrial technologies, while electronics rarely appears as a leading sector in its own right. Instead, it operates largely as an enabling layer, embedded across research and industrial value chains rather than shaping the narrative of Swiss innovation.

A privately driven R&D system

One of the defining features of Swiss R&D is the dominant role of the private sector. Business enterprises account for close to 70% of total R&D expenditure, placing Switzerland among the most privately driven research systems in Europe. Research activity is therefore closely linked to industrial production and corporate technology strategies rather than to large-scale national programmes or centralised public initiatives.

This structure is reflected in the country’s industrial composition. The mechanical, electrical and metal industry — commonly referred to as the MEM sector — employs roughly 325,000 people and represents around one-third of Switzerland’s industrial exports. It is also one of the main recipients of private R&D spending, reinforcing the close link between applied research, engineering and production-oriented innovation. Within this environment, much of Switzerland’s applied R&D takes place at the intersection of mechanical engineering, electronics and systems integration.

For electronics, this model has clear implications. Corporate-led R&D prioritises technologies that can be directly integrated into products and production systems. The emphasis is on reliability, precision and long-term performance rather than rapid, consumer-driven development cycles. This aligns with Switzerland’s broader industrial profile, where value creation is based on specialised, high-quality systems rather than high-volume manufacturing.

Electronics as an enabling technology

Electronics in Switzerland is rarely framed as an industry in its own right. Instead, it functions primarily as an enabling layer supporting automation, machinery, logistics, building technologies and laboratory equipment. Advanced manufacturing ecosystems rely heavily on embedded electronics, control systems, sensors and industrial ICT platforms. As a result, electronics is present across large parts of the economy, but often indirectly.

This positioning helps explain why electronics rarely appears prominently in national innovation narratives, despite its systemic importance. Swiss electronics activity is typically embedded within larger industrial structures rather than organised around standalone consumer markets or vertically integrated electronics champions.

Industrial electronics in practice

The role of electronics becomes more visible when examined through specific industrial segments and companies. In industrial automation and mechatronics, firms such as Stäubli develop robotic systems and connectors that combine mechanical engineering with advanced control electronics. Phoenix Mecano, for instance, operates globally in industrial components, electronic enclosures and system solutions that form the backbone of automation and control architectures used across multiple industries.

In logistics automation, Swisslog illustrates how electronics, software and systems engineering converge in practice. Its automated intralogistics solutions depend on sensor technologies, embedded control electronics and integrated software platforms — areas where sustained R&D investment is essential to maintain competitiveness in global markets.

Sensors and measurement technologies form another key pillar. Companies such as Kistler Group specialise in high-precision measurement systems used in industrial processes, automotive testing and medical applications. Kistler invests a significant share of its revenue in R&D and holds several hundred active patents, illustrating how electronics-driven innovation is embedded within Switzerland’s high-value industrial niches rather than mass-market products.

Microsystems and MEMS technologies further extend this landscape. Switzerland hosts a concentrated ecosystem of companies active in micro-scale sensing, signal processing and system integration, supplying solutions for industrial monitoring, medical diagnostics and environmental measurement. These activities are highly specialised, export-oriented and closely aligned with global technology roadmaps.

A small domestic market, global value chains

Switzerland’s domestic market for electronics is limited, both by population size and by the absence of large-scale consumer electronics manufacturing. Demand is dominated by B2B applications and high-value industrial systems rather than mass-market consumer products. As a result, Swiss electronics companies are deeply integrated into global value chains, with technologies developed domestically frequently incorporated into larger systems manufactured and deployed abroad.

This international orientation reinforces the central role of R&D. To remain competitive, companies must continuously adapt to global standards, customer requirements and regulatory frameworks. Innovation is therefore driven less by domestic scale and more by technological depth, system-level competence and long-term industrial partnerships.

A distinct European configuration

Within the European R&D landscape, Switzerland represents a distinct configuration of research intensity and industrial organisation. While the EU’s average R&D expenditure remains below 2.3% of GDP, Switzerland consistently exceeds 3%, placing it among Europe’s most R&D-intensive economies. At the same time, its system differs structurally from both large industrial economies and smaller, state-coordinated innovation models.

It is worth taking a closer look at Germany, which combines very high absolute R&D expenditure — exceeding EUR 120 billion annually — with industrial scale and broad sectoral coverage, including automotive, machinery, electronics and chemicals. France, on the other hand, follows a more state-directed approach, with a stronger role for public research institutions, national programmes and strategic coordination. Switzerland, by contrast, combines high R&D intensity with decentralisation and corporate autonomy, with private enterprises responsible for nearly 70% of total R&D spending.

For electronics, this European positioning has concrete consequences. Switzerland offers a highly supportive environment for deep specialisation and applied innovation, but fewer pathways for rapid scaling into mass markets. Electronics functions less as a headline sector and more as critical infrastructure within the industrial ecosystem. It underpins automation, precision manufacturing and system integration — quietly shaping innovation performance without defining the public narrative.