Does the amount of cash you pump into the potential void that is research and development correlate to how innovative you are as a company? Nope. Well, not if a new report is to be believed, at least. Question is, is there anything Google and the like can do to catch Apple?

Booz’ annual Global Innovation 1000 report, which scours reams of data for 1000 of the world’s biggest companies, has ranked Apple as the most innovative brand on the planet for the second year running.

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That lead is actually greater than it was this time last year, even though Apple’s spending far less on R&D than some of its rivals. Whilst Samsung alone spends $7 billion on its tinkerers and lab staff, Apple splashes just $2.4 billion annually.

Google, Microsoft and Nokia all dwarf Apple’s figures, and yet Apple has landed on top by way of a vote.

Is that a fair result? Or is Booz’ survey being swayed by Apple’s mask of coolness? Let us know which company you really think is the most innovative in the comments section below.

Link: Booz

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  • http://twitter.com/lexplex_ Alex

    Apple’s innovative in its visual design and marketing approach, but 90% of the hardware underneath the sexy exterior is someone else’s creation. Samsung, Intel, ARM, Corning, Sony… even Apple’s Siri is based on licensed algorithms which have existed in Nokia phones for years. If you ranked businesses by the number of patents they own, or number of patents awarded in the last year, or number of patents in use in technology, it would also rank Apple a fair few spaces further down the list than they’d like everyone to believe.

  • Matt Buckey

    Apple stopped innovating years ago, they are now the masters of perfection, honing their systems. This is not necessarily a good thing though, and I think the mantle should go elsewhere.

  • Anonymous

    good one…can’t stop lauging

  • Anonymous

    Kind of strange to find the more money you throw into the bottomless pit called R&D will make a company more innovative. It really tickle my toes.

  • Spatchcock

    Wake up guys, there aren’t any electricpig readers coherent (or even conscious) enough to give an honest opinion and yes, I do count myself among them. So taking all of that into account along with the points you raised———— Y’know what, I really can’t be arsed. The answer in NO. You know that’s true and you’re paid to write this stuff so why don’t you write and tell us why ffs.

  • dave83

    I think apple were inovaters back in 97 and for a couple of years afterwards but in the past few companys like Samsung, Nokia and Asus have been much more inovative in thier technology and also when it comes to software. I used to like apple products but they have brought nothing inovative to the table in the past few years as design is the same, Software has only got new features that others have over the past several years but they market it so well people think its inovative, siri was licenesed, Apple maps went so wrong yet you could buy an android 3/4 years ago that nailed it first time. In my opinnion Samsu g have brought amazing software to their newer devices and deserve no1 in inovation. Apple are just a brand that people see as cool but no dou t they have the best marketing department out there.

  • Andrew Roid

    Apple choose to litigate rather than innovate, they are clearly on the wain particularly in mobile markets. You only have to look to Motorola or Nokia to see where this leads. The iPhone was a great product but a severe lack of development and the recent ios 6 debacle makes it no longer relevant or credible. People will buy a device they consider cool, but when being ridiculed by their peers for owning an inferior product will see the product lose that sheen.

    The loss of Steve Jobs marks a huge turning point for Apple, but not in a good way.

  • Karl A

    Who among these companies you all cite as more innovative has done anything to even come close to what aapl had wrought in mobile, music, pcs. Surfing on the wake of aapl is not innovation. You may even pass aapl on specs but until you can create a 100 billion on an single that everyone else has to respond to, you have not innovated

  • http://www.facebook.com/k34n0 Daniel Keane

    Apple have innovated jack shit! All they’ve done is reinvent stuff made by other companies and make it cool and fashionable so millions of douche bags pay through the nose for it.

    Not only that, but they actually stifle innovation of other companies with their constant, ridiculous law suits.

    Thank god the average iJoe is finally starting to realise how Apple work and stop chucking money at them.

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