Asia’s largest spender in technologyChina’s top 100 internet companies have increased their investment in research and development (R&D) activities, spending 153.87 billion yuan (US$21.85 billion) last year. This marks the highest collective spend by the group, to date, and a 45.1% climb from 2017, according to stats released by the Internet Society of China, which is affiliated with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT).
On average, the country’s top 100 internet companies 10% of their revenue for R&D, with four in the pack slicing off 30% to 35% for such initiatives, reported state-run media China Daily. Led by Alibaba Group, the group includes Tencent and Baidu–which are second and third, respectively–but also comprises Alibaba’s subsidiary Ant Financial.