Elite Quality Index 2025 See the U.S.A. Up 14 Places to Nr. 2 on the Back of AI Value Creation While Asia is on the Rise

The Elite Quality Index (EQx) returns in 2025 with its sixth edition, with the academic leadership at the University of St.Gallen (HSG) and done in collaboration with international academic partners and the St. Gallen Foundation for Value Creation. The EQx evaluates 151 countries across 149 indicators to measure complex concepts such as Power and Value, ultimately assessing whether national elites are creating value for society or extracting it from the public.

SANKT GALLEN, CH / ACCESS Newswire / May 13, 2025 / Elite quality matters: High-quality elites expand the economic pie for everyone, while low-quality elites increase their own share at the expense of others. The EQx is grounded in the elite theory of economic development, where elites are defined as the dominant business models within a nation's political economy. These include actors such as large corporations, financial institutions, labour unions, and civil servants.

The EQx editors at the University of St.Gallen, Dr. Tomas Casas and Prof. Guido Cozzi, PhD., emphasize that elite agency is a key driver of economic development, as it shapes both inclusive and extractive systems. The index offers unique insight into a country's current sustainable value creation and its potential long-term growth.

EQx2025 Highlights are:

• U.S.A. Skyrockets to #2 - AI Shakes the Global Order
  Singapore retains its position at #1 in the EQx2025. However, the big story this year is the United States, which leaps from #16 to #2 overall, overtaking Switzerland, now in third place. This dramatic rise is largely attributed to the introduction of five new AI-focused indicators among the total 149 - highlighting how artificial intelligence is now central to elite-driven value creation.
  

• Elite Business Models Evolve - AI Increasingly Drives Both Value Creation and Disruption
  What sets the Elite Quality Index (EQx) apart from other rankings is its real-time, adaptive design. It doesn't capture the world in still frames - it functions like a seismograph, tracking real-time shifts in how elites create or extract value. In 2025, the EQx integrated five new AI-specific indicators, reflecting the rapidly rising role of artificial intelligence in shaping elite performance.

  The results speak for themselves: the United States now leads in AI-driven value creation, with Singapore, South Korea, and China close behind. In the global Top 10, only two European countries remain: the United Kingdom at #5 and Germany at #8. Israel ranks #7, and the United Arab Emirates claims the #9 spot.

• Asia Rising
  China continues to climb, reaching #19 - an extraordinary result for a middle-income country - thanks in part to its rapid advancement in AI. India also shows strong upward momentum, moving up 3 spots to #60, a substantial improvement from its #118 ranking in 2021. Japan maintains its stronghold at #4, while Korea's unstoppable ascend puts it at #5.
  

• The EU Lags in Present Performance but Leads in Legacy - While the U.S.A. EQx Lead Rests on Shaky Ground
  While most EU countries perform only modestly in the overall EQx rankings, they excel in the NextGen Value Creation Barometer (NGVCb) - a metric that assesses how effectively elite systems serve future generations. In 2025, Denmark, Israel, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and Sweden top the NGVCb, reflecting a clear long-term orientation.

In stark contrast, several of today's EQx front-runners show troubling gaps. China ranks just #68, and even Singapore only reaches #23 - signaling a widening generational divide in elite performance. Most notably, the United States, despite its dramatic leap to #2 overall in the EQx, ranks just #55 in the NGVCb.

This disconnect raises a pressing question for the standout performer of this year's edition: Is the U.S.A. elite system truly sustainable? If America turns inward, embraces protectionism, and fails to confront deep structural challenges - including healthcare, equity, and equal opportunity - can the value it creates today meaningfully reach the next generation?

Interactive Data Platform Now Live

The key EQx2025 data is now available on an interactive and user-friendly platform. Users can compare countries, explore indicator-level detail, and assess national strengths and weaknesses across elite systems.

"With this platform, our students, as well as journalists analyzing global developments, banks assessing country risk, and the broader public seeking to understand how the world works, now have a tool to gain deeper insight into the role elites play across 151 countries," said editors Casas and Cozzi.

An academic version of the paper can be found at papers.ssrn.com and the full version is published by Anthem Press. More information also at elitequality.org.

SOURCE: University of St. Gallen