Swiss Productivity Monitor

Interesting analysis in „Die Volkswirtschaft“ by Gregor Lauter and Timothey Nussbaumer from SECO on productivity trends in big and small firms.

A few companies continue to increase their productivity strongly, while average productivity growth is very low for others. Only successful companies grow to become larger companies.

The differences in productivity growth rates between company sizes are less pronounced in other countries than in Switzerland.

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The Swiss Venture Capital Report 2025 has been published.

„Startup founders and investors have to be optimists, otherwise they would not take the risks associated with their jobs. In 2024, optimism was a little more in demand than usual: investments declined, exits remained at a low level and IPOs failed to materialize at all.“

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Worthwhile analysis by Marcus Scheiblecker (Austrian Institute of Economic Research WIFO) on the development of industrial production in the DACH region and other European countries.

Austria’s Industrial Production in International Comparison

„The better performance of Denmark and Switzerland is due to the pharmaceutical industry. Without this sector, Austria shows no lag in production, value creation, or labor productivity.“

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Very interesting study by BAK Basel on the Zurich financial center with a focus on Private Equity Capital (English summary available):

Zurich Financial Center 2025/2026: Monitor, Forecasts, Focus Private Equity Capital

„As part of the special topic, the study examines the players in ‚Private Equity Capital,‘ which includes private equity and venture capital companies, single family offices, multi-family offices, and foundations. They all play a key role in financing startups and innovations.“

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While government formation in Austria continues to drag on, Germany is still preparing for elections. Excitement is guaranteed. At least in terms of promises, at least some parties haven’t held back.

ifo Institute (Maximilian Joseph Blömer, Eike Johannes Eser, Lilly Fischer, AndreasPeichl): ifo Institute criticizes election programs 2025 – Many gifts, little counter-financing

DIW (Stefan Bach): Parties‘ tax reform proposals: Ambitious relief for workingmiddle class and businesses drive deficits

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Innovation Made in Germany – From Industrial Powerhouse to Digital Laggard? (by Christian Rutzer)

“For decades, Germany’s innovation landscape has been shaped by engineering excellence. Using the Revealed Innovation Advantage (RIA) – which compares Germany’s share of patents in key sectors with global trends – we can see how the country’s innovation strengths have evolved.”

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How can sustainability be measured in the Swiss agricultural and food system?

Interesting blog post by Stéphanie Lichtsteiner, Co-Director of Fair Markets Switzerland:

„A central challenge for many assessment approaches is balancing complexity, flexibility, and efficiency of data collection on farms.“

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CEPR Webinar Series on the Economics of Artificial Intelligence

„This Webinar Series explores the transformative implications of AI, with particular focus on the ongoing rapid AI advances and their far-reaching impacts on our economies and societies.“ Next webinar on 25th February 2025, 5pm CET. Chad Jones (Stanford GSB and NBER) will present „How much should we spend to reduce A.I.’s existential risk?“

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Which Economic Tasks are Performed with AI? Evidence from Millions of Claude Conversations by a team from Anthropic

“We also analyze how AI is being used for tasks, finding 57% of usage suggests augmentation of human capabilities (e.g.,learning or iterating on an output) while 43% suggests automation (e.g.,fulfilling a request with minimal human involvement). While our data andmethods face important limitations and only paint a picture of AI usage on asingle platform, they provide an automated, granular approach for tracking AI’s evolving role in the economy»

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Super interesting! „The Labor Market Effects of Generative Artificial Intelligence“ byJonathan S. Hartley, Filip Jolevski, Vitor Melo, and Brendan Moore. „In this paper we develop a new survey analyzing Generative AI use in the labor market to assist in measuring the economic effects of Generative AI. Wefind, consistent with other surveys that Generative AI tools like large language models (LLMs) are most commonly used in the labor force by younger individuals, more highly educated individuals, higher income individuals, and those in particular industries such as customer service, marketing and information technology.“

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A must-read!

„Institutions, Technology and Prosperity“ by Daron Acemoglu (based on his 2024 Nobel Lecture)

„This paper reviews the main motivations and arguments of my work on comparative development, colonialism and institutional change, which was often carried out jointly with James Robinson and Simon Johnson.“

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This is really interesting and important!

„European competitiveness: the role of institutions and the case for structural reforms“ by Marinela-Daniela Filip, Daphne Momferatou and Susana Parraga Rodriguez

„The complexity and variability of regulations across EU Member States create barriers to entry and increase compliance costs for businesses, making Europeless attractive compared with more streamlined regulatory environments like the United States.“

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Productivity Bite: Space Industry in Switzerland – A High-Technology Sector with Growth Perspectives

by Guido Baldi and Simon Holenstein. Simon works for Swiss Public Affairs. This piece represents the authors‘ personal opinions and does not necessarily reflect the views of Swiss.

• Globally, the space industry is experiencing strong growth (Figure 1). It has evolved from a state-dominated sector to a dynamic,increasingly private-sector-driven structure. The United States leadsthe field.
• With over 100 specialized companies and around 3,000employees, Switzerland is a niche player globally appreciated for its quality.Key areas include satellite components, electronics, and high-precisionmechanics. Swiss technologies can be found in almost all European satellites and rockets.
• Research institutions are also active. Under the leadership of former NASA Science Director Thomas Zurbuchen, the ETH Zurich |Space initiative was founded with the goal of „creating synergies between ETH Zurich’s space activities and increasing their visibility, as well as providing support in project planning, funding acquisition, and consortium building.“ EPFL Lausanne has the EPFL Space Center. Other universities like the University of Bern and universities of applied sciences are also very active in space sciences.
• In the space industry, a distinction must be made between upstream and downstream:
• Upstream: capital-intensive activities such as rocket and satellite development. Swiss companies like Beyond Gravity play a key role in carrier structures and thermal insulation.
• Downstream: data-based services with diverse applications. For example, startups like Exo-Labs use satellite data for applications in logistics, agriculture, and Earth observation.
• Additionally, advances in AI and data analysis enable new business models previously unconnected to space technology. Various activities are underway at the federal level to promote Switzerland’s position in the Space Economy. The adoption of the postulate „National Measures to Strengthen the Space Sector“ by Council of States member Benedikt Würth is one example. The goal is to create optimal framework conditions for research, innovation, and investment to strengthen Switzerland in global competition.
• Independently, at the end of January, the Federal Council opened the consultation on the new Federal Space Act, which had been in development since February 2022 to create a national legal framework for space activities.
• A national space competence center, as called for in the postulate „National Measures to Strengthen the Space Sector,“ could provide important additional impulses for space research and industry in Switzerland, but must not lead to more bureaucracy or hinder private initiatives.